A Bird in the Hand, Two in the Cage
by Zhe-Ubermensch
Summary: To try to even the playing cards, RED hires a tenth mercenary. Though the new class is a girl, she's capable of whatever task they put her up to. In response, BLU starts using loopholes in the contract to defy everything that's been done before and put the very lives of the REDs in danger, regardless of Respawn. Can Sparky's "friend" save them until a compromise is made?
1. Class 10

Theodora Sparks did not care in the slightest what her father had to say. She was going, no matter what. She needed the excitement, as far as she was concerned. The danger thrilled her. And being surrounded by a bunch of men as or more rowdy than her sounded like paradise. A good way to prove her point.

So she was in the back of Sniper's camper van, thumbing the pages of her book wordlessly as they bumped around in the New Mexico desert. She couldn't say it was a new experience for her. She'd spent lots of time in the back of cars, just trying to get to this place with the least amount of money in the shortest time. And when she was close enough, she'd found Sniper, told him her business, and now here she was.

Her blonde, short hair stuck to her forehead in sweaty clumps, and she brushed them away tiredly. It had been a long trip. All the way from Canada down to New Mexico was a long trip. But she was finally here. In paradise. And paradise, apparently, was called Teufort.

* * *

Alarms blared in the RED base. Soldier's eyes popped open hastily, and he tumbled from his bed.

"IT'S A CODE YELLOW, MAGGOTS! I REPEAT, A CODE YELLOW!"

The man slammed his dusty helmet on his head and raked his jacket from a nearby chair. In the neighboring room, Demoman was still trying to find out what was going on beyond the pounding in his head from the drinking he had done the night before. He teetered on the edge of his cot precariously as he pulled on his socks inside out.

"I's a wha'now? Wha, ah, who?"

Scout yanked open his door and hollered, "It's the new Class, guys! Get your fat asses out of bed! C'mon, let's go, let's go!" He was around the corner and bolting for the Intelligence room within seconds, narrowly missing slamming into Spy's chest.

"Mon dieu! Please, contain yourself, boy! I can assure you we are all equally excited, but caution comes before recklessness." The Frenchman straightened his tie, pulled his mask tighter over his face, checked his breath, then began to saunter down the hall after him, but Soldier was running as well.

"PICK UP YOUR FEET YOU FRENCH SCUM AND GET YOUR ASS DOWN THERE!"

Spy rolled his eyes, then entered a light jog to satisfy the crazed American. Demoman stumbled behind.

* * *

"Eh, whad'ya say yer name was again, Sheila?" Sniper glanced back at Theodora through his rearview mirror as the RED and BLU bases entered his vision. "Don' wanna embarrass meself in front of me own mates by forgettin' yer name."

"Just call me by my class name," Theodora said. "Sparky."

"If ya want, Sheila. Er, Sparky. Yeah."

Sniper never was one to make good conversation. Luckily for him, Theodora was. Even luckier,though, she wasn't in a mood to talk.

She was nervous, but she couldn't let it show. As a female, she was already at a disadvantage. Weakness could not be afforded. No signs of despair or pain or sadness. Just a cold, stone like exterior for them to feast on. Loose shirts to discourage the eye, long khaki pants, and a belt. Definitely a belt.

She would not be made fun of because of her gender.

* * *

Heavy roared with laughter as Pyro made a show of buttering the burnt bread as if it was spreading frosting on a cake for the President himself.

"Leetle Pyro has burnt toast! No need for fancy spreading, da?! Hahaha!"

Pyro muttered something under its mask, but no one heard. No one ever did. The few universal words they could understand was "fire" and "Medic".

The masked fire maker placed a heaping plate of buttered, burnt toast before the giant Russian, and said something that sounded like, "Tada!" Heavy patted Pyro on the back.

"Pyro not make best toast, but makes toast happy. Is why I eat! Happiness to start the day!"

"Hdda," the Pyro said.

At that moment, heavy, relaxed footsteps tromped into the room, and the owner of the footsteps, Engineer, grabbed a mug of coffee.

"Mornin' boys,"he drawled out as he yawned.

"Good morning, Engineer!"

"Hdda!"

"Shouldn't ya'll be headin' on down to the Intelligence room?" Engineer motioned to the still blaring sirens, which had not failed to catch anyone's attention, but Heavy and Pyro had chosen to ignore it. "New class shows up today."

Heavy waved it away. "Is no big deal to me. I want my breakfast, and so I eat."

"Hdda."

Engineer chuckled. "Well, maybe it'd change your mind if y'all knew that the new Class is female?"

Heavy spat out his toast. "LEETLE SPARKY IS WOMAN!?"

"HDDA!?"

"Sure as rain, boys. You may still have time to get on down there an' meet her if ya hurry now."

Engie had never seen those two run so fast. He chuckled and leaned back on the counter, still sipping his coffee. "Ain't they just a pocket o' sunshine now?"

* * *

In the infirmary, the dozens of doves crowded around their master and cooed contentedly. It was a wonderful, bright and unusually cool morning. Of course, that didn't mean it wasn't still hot. It was always hot.

Medic stared at himself in the mirror of his personal bathroom, meticulously picking at every stray strand of hair until he assumed his hair was perfect. He snatched his glasses from the edge of the sink, cleaned both lenses hastily, and slid them onto the bridge of his nose. Then, he held out his arms, and his doves took the signal. Four of them grabbed his lab coat from where it lay across a chair and flew it to their master. He slipped his arms into the sleeves, and buttoned it up.

"Danke, meine Tauben."

The doves practically purred all around him.

"It is a new day, my friends," he said. "A new friend. A new Class. I am curious as to how she vill behave surrounded by so many men."

They understood perfectly what this could mean. With all the drinking that goes on around the base, disaster could surely ensue should she not be careful. Medic merely chuckled at the thought. He snapped on his gloves and hummed, "Let's go practice medicine."

* * *

The van skidded to a stop in the gravelly dirt, and Sniper put the vehicle into park. "Welcome to RED, Sparky."

She looked out at the rickety old base and scrunched up her nose at the sight.

"Needs some maintenance," she commented.

"Yeah, it's fine," Sniper grunted. "Keeps the rain off the Intelligence." He hopped out of the van and headed to the other side to grab Theodora's bags. "Don't worry 'bout yer stuff, I'll put it in yer room. You find yer way to the Intelligence room and meet the team. They've all been scratchin' their chins too hard thinkin' what you'll be like." He grinned at her over his shades. "Best to put their minds to rest, yeah?"

Sparky nodded. No grin. No sound. Just a swift turn of the heel and a march up to the main doors. A camera marked her every movement. A high, nasally voice echoed through a speaker.

"State your business please, Ma'am."

She could hear someone yelling in the background. Probably the Soldier she's been warned about.

"I'm the new Sparky Class Reliable Excavation and Demolition has put a fortune into to get the advantage over Builders League United."

"Please show us proof that you are not an Enemy Spy."

She held up both her wrists, which would hold a watch that would allow the Spy to cloak. No watch. The doors shuddered to life, and creaked open slowly. She slipped through before the cycle was complete.

Immediately, she saw the shadow and blur of the RED Spy following her. That was the thing that had sold them; she had ridiculously good eye vision. She ignored him as she walked into the building and took the signs into consideration. To her left, Respawn. Sparky had heard she would get to love that one. To her right, Intelligence room.

That's where she was headed.

She glanced behind her to see if the Spy was still there, but he was walking past her as she did. He still thought he was invisible to her. How cute. She thrust out her arm and cut the breath out of his chest. He gasped, his cloak shivered, and he knew he'd been caught. With a scowl, he de-cloaked and stared at the new recruit.

"Good afternoon, mademoiselle."

"Hi."

They stared each other down warily. He took her appearance and stature to memory, she paid attention to his expression and outfit. They looked down, then back up at each other at the same time.

"You're shorter than I thought you'd be," he admitted.

"You're older than I thought you'd be. Let me guess, forty? Forty five?"

Spy snorted at her guesses, but she could read the distraught behind that cocky mask of his. She gave him no parting word as she continued on her way to the Intelligence room. He didn't follow her either, but she knew he would be there.

Sparky passed by the kitchen and saw Engineer posed cooly at the counter, rinsing his mug of coffee absentmindedly. When he saw her, he grinned and hurried to her side.

"Well, afternoon, ma'am."

"Hello, Engineer."

He was a little taken aback.

"Gosh, you really paid attention to those files, didn't ya?"

"Yessir. Pleasure to finally meet you."

Theodora smiled, and Engie blushed a little. "Awe, I'm nothin' much, ma'am, just doin' my part. Ah, pardon me asking, but are you from up north?"

"I am," she replied.

"Mighty warm down here, ain't it?"

"Canada can be worse depending on where you go," she replied. "I hear it's a bitch in B.C."

"I heard that too, but I have yet to see for myself."

"I wouldn't if I were you, just take the resident's word on it."

Engineer nodded, then cut in, "Ah, you missed the turn, darlin'."

She had been too caught up in her conversation with him to have noticed. She turned around and quietly said, "I knew that. I was testing you to see if _you_ noticed."

Despite how convincing her tone sounded, Engie saw right through it. He grinned kindly and chuckled. "I knew that you knew that you'd missed the turn. I was just testin' _you_."

"ENGINEER, WHAT ARE YOU DOING LOITERING IN THE HALL LIKE A DRUNKEN HIPPIE? YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE IN THE INTELLIGENCE ROOM AT EXACTLY TEN HUNDRED HOURS!"

Soldier burst around the corner and pushed his trusty shovel into Engineer's throat, threatening to cut him should he move or speak wrongly. But he was used to his threats. Engineer was an open book to him, and he reveled in it.

"My apologies, Solly. I was just escorting Miss Sparks here the rest of the way."

"Actually, I was-"

"THAT'S FINE, ENGINEER, BUT YOU SHOULD PICK UP YOUR PACE. WE HAVE BEEN AWAITING YOUR ARRIVAL FOR NEARLY TWENTY MINUTES."

Theodora shook with shock at this… this… excuse for a sentient human. It was entirely necessary to bite her lip on the inside until it bled from the sudden rush of hatred and disgust.

Soldier lowered his shovel, saluted his teammates, then paraded down the hall to the Intelligence room. For good measure, he slammed the door too. The bang echoed, and the Spy cringed as he rounded the corner to catch up with them.

"That must 'ave been the Soldiuer," he grunted.

"Right as rain," Engie nodded. "We better get down there before he comes back out. Solly ain't one for patience," he joked to Theodora as they descended the short ramp.


	2. Medic

Scout would not keep still, and for once, no one stopped him. They were all just as nervous. Heavy had blurted out four times that the Sparky was a woman without anyone correcting him, and Demo was constantly checking his breath. Even Miss Pauling, who had stopped by to make sure the new Class was well situated, was shifting from one foot to the other.

The only mercenary who seemed totally at peace was the Medic, who was crooning silently to his favorite dove, Archimedes, ruffling his feathers appreciatively. There was no hint of anxious energy in his stance. No signs of being fazed at all. Even when Soldier had yelled at him to "quit talking to the tiny furry albino".

The handle of the door clicked, and six heads (Sniper was still preparing Sparks' room) jerked up, and all movement stopped, and all breathing ceased, as if to save the oxygen for the girl about to enter.

Engineer poked his head in, and there was an angry shout from the Scout.

"Engie, you fuckin' bastard! We all thought it was the chick! Jesus Christ man, I almost fucking exploded from staying so fucking still! Do you have any idea-"

The room was silent again as a thin, rough, tanned hand shoved Engineer aside and a voice sneered, "What did you call me, kid?"

Scout just gulped.

Theodora Sparks stepped into the room gracefully, but her boots betrayed her demeanor of anything graceful. Cold, silver-blue eyes- just like the rest of them, she realized- stabbed into the young runner with strict calculation. His eyes bulged as if she was willing them to jump from their sockets.

For some reason, Soldier burst out laughing.

"YOU ARE A SCARY WOMAN! DAMN BEAUTIFUL, BUT SCARY!"

"Quiet, Mister Doe," she snapped. He was quick to obey.

She cleared her throat as the men stared at her expectantly. Medic just looked amused.

"I am the new Sparky class," she began. "I will be joining you boys as an _equal_ member of Reliable Excavation and Demolition. I expect nothing less than equal treatment as a fellow mercenary and not as a woman. So get your eyes off of my breasts and tuck your cocks back in, because if you so much as_ look_ at a girl that looks like me, I will shove these boots right up your foreign asses. Understood?"

Scout nodded quickly, at a loss for words. Soldier and Demoman growled and crossed their arms and pouted. Pyro gave a friendly thumbs up. Heavy gave a hoarse "Da." Engineer, from behind her back, shook his head, unimpressed and disappointed.

From the corner of the Intel room came a soft chuckle. All present eyes turned to the German doctor. His stared at the woman before him.

"Oh, you poor, poor, _frauline_," he purred. "Resorting to threats to assert your position? Your eyes tell a different story. A story of… subtle fear."

It took her four long strides to be a foot away from the taller man, and she hissed into his neck:

"I'll show you fear, you German freak."

She raised a hand as if to slap him, but a high, nasally voice called, "You'll immediately terminate your contract if you strike a team member in the first week, Miss Sparks."

The Doctor and the Canadian stared at Miss Pauling with a simmering annoyance, but it was temporary. Medic took the initiative and stepped away and around the girl.

"Miss Pauling is right, I'm afraid," he agreed. "It would be unvwise for somevone so veak to strike me now."

"Put a lid on it, Doc!" Engineer cried. "We need Sparky! Don't push her outta here!"

"No," the girl said, "It's fine." Her eyes shifted to the Doctor again. "Everyone here will receive the proper treatment they deserve from me."

He smirked a challenge her way. Miss Pauling shook her head, and the Spy ducked into the room.

"Well, I assume you've 'ad the time to meet everyone sufficiently judging from the argument I heard from outside."

"It ain't with Soldier, that's for damn sure," Scout chanted. "You see, Needles-n'-Feathers ovah there was-"

Demo placed his hand over the young Boston's mouth quickly in an attempt to avoid another argument. "Ya see, spoi, 'e was tellin' the lass how she's gon'to have ta' 'ave a heart transplant so she'll be compatible with the übercharge."

"I did not understand a word he said," Sparky muttered.

Spy waved it away dismissively. "You'll know when the time comes. Miss Pauling, I promise we can 'andle it from 'ere."

The small woman nodded. "Engie, I'm counting on you to keep her under control just for today so we can get her a Respawn chip without her beating herself to death. Keep her hands away from the other mercs."

"I'll certainly try ma'am," he gulped.

She was quick to clear out of there after that, and after giving the men a hasty dismissal. Scout was after her in a flash, undoubtedly to try and make a move on the woman. Then Spy slunk out, then Pyro (to the Spy's dismay), then Soldier, then Heavy, then Demo (who, despite her warning, flashed a flirtatious smile), and finally, the Medic. He chuckled darkly and grumbled, "See you in zhe operating zheater, you _hübsche kleine Dämon_."

Though she did not understand any of it, Engie smacked his own head loudly and muttered, "… can't believe you…"

The door was very, very loud as it clicked shut slowly.

* * *

There was not much change to the uniform in comparison to the clothes she came in. Just a bright red shirt and brown pants, a brown trench-coat, and black boots.

Theodora liked the way she looked very much. Mature. Powerful. In charge.

She strutted into the dining room with confidence, which was immediately smashed after she realized the nightmare before her.

Heavy was hogging all the sandwiches, and he had Scout in a headlock to keep him from the filling food. Pyro was crouched in the corner, hiding its face from everyone else as it ate, but that didn't stop Soldier from screaming at the poor thing. Something about pancakes and tabasco sauce.

Of course, Demoman was already drunk, and he was leaning dangerously close off of the edge of the table. Sniper was up in the rafters, his foot hanging down as he scarved down some beans in a can. Spy, as a mean trick, took that foot and yanked hard. The Aussie fell right on top of the Frenchman, and they rolled right onto the sandwiches as they punched and kicked each other. Heavy was not amused. He picked them both up by their heads and tossed them in Theodora's direction without even realizing she was there.

It wasn't until Engie screamed for silence did they realize the girl was there, and you could hear a pin drop as she took the least squashed sandwich and the least chipped glass of water and sat down in an empty space and took a bite of her sandwich.

If Medic was there, she'd have smacked him and got in on the fighting. But a) he wasn't there, and b) she still had to wait a day to get involved in any physical violence. Pity.

Now that Heavy was distracted, Scout could grab a sandwich of his own. There was no conflict when he did. No one even looked at him as they gazed at the woman eat her sandwich, then take a second, and then a third.

Engineer rolled his eyes as she reached for her third.

"For Chris'sakes, boys, she ain't stoppin' ya from eatin'."

Seven hands dove into the plate to grab the last of the food. The conversation arose again.

"Yo, did ya see what Miss Paulin' was wearin'? I swear to God, she's askin' for it, man."

"Pyro need come to table and eat with us for once. Is special occasion! Come out of corner, da?"

"Oi, Spoi, get yer damn elbows outta me food!"

"THIS IS A SANDWICH, AND I AM GOING TO EAT IT WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT!"

"Lad, stop talkin' 'bout Miss Paulin' like she's a dirty hoe!"

"Hdda! Hdda, hdda hdda, hudaa!"

"Oh, mon dieu."

Someone screamed, and they all laughed. No one knew why, or who screamed. It was just common. Even Sparky giggled a little. Thank God no one stopped to stare at her.

She brushed hands with five other mercenaries as she reached for the last sandwich. Heavy, Engie, Spy, and Sniper looked bewildered. Soldier froze only for a second, then snatched the sandwich and ran from the room, laughing loudly. The four others followed, screaming and yelling obscenities at the man for stealing "Sparky's" sandwich.

She coughed, and Demo and Scout laughed.

"You ain't used to so many guys courtin' ya, are ya?"

"They are NOT courting me."

"Hdda? Hdda hdda hdaa hhddaaa."

"Nah, they just tink they got ta' treat ya special with ya bein' a lass an' all, but you show 'em what yer worth, and you'll be one o' the boys in no time, Sparky."

The Demoman slugged her playfully in an attempt to see her smile. She didn't afford it to him, but nodded to let him know his words had gotten through.

There was a loud crash, and a cry of pain, and then silence.

"Welp," Scout sighed, "Looks like Solly jumped outta window again. Dumb bastard"

"Is he dead?"

"Yup. Don' worry 'bout it though, he'll respawn and be to his old self again in no time. I swear, it's happened, like, a bajillion times. He thinks he's a fuckin' god, he can throw himself outta plane and he'll wake up in bed like nothin' happened. It don't work like that, I'm tellin' ya, Respawn hurts like a bitch!"

"Aye," Demo agreed solemnly. "Ya don' wan' ta' mess with da system." He took another swig of Scrumpy, then abruptly passed out. Scout and Sparky sniggered.

"Should we get the German?"

"Nah, he's good."

Pyro wobbled over and gave the unconscious Scott a hug.

"Hddaaaaa… Hudda hdda…"

* * *

From her bedroom, Theodora inhaled the New Mexico desert air deeply, then exhaled her past with it. Letting go had never felt so good, especially with nine other crazy mercenaries behind her.

But what to do about that pesky Medic? Undoubtedly, she would be his new favorite guinea pig, based on the stories she'd heard about him from the Administrator. Should she fight him? Should she let him have his way? Oh God, that sounded bad. That sounded very, very bad. She'd fight him. She'd fight him to the death if she had to, until Respawn stopped recognizing her genetic code and gave up trying to resurrect her.

And then there was Engie. He was so protective, overbearing. She found she didn't mind it much, but she'd need to break away if she was going to be taken seriously out there tomorrow. He couldn't have him erecting his turrets all around her. Turrets? No, they were Sentries. If she had to, she could lock him in his workshop for a day. He wouldn't mind too badly, she hoped.

Spy would be a definite problem, with all his snooping. On cue, she glanced around her room, scanning for his presence with her bare eyes. Nothing. Note to self; put electric barrier on door. If he found out anything about her past- not that it was bad, just ridiculously innocent- she'd just die. She needed to be feared by these men if they were going to listen and work with her and not for her.

After all, she was here to prove a point.

There was a soft knock at her door. She jumped, squeaked quietly. The others were supposed to be asleep. "Who's there?" she called past the door.

An unfamiliar voice whispered back, "It's me."

"Who is me?"

"That's wrong grammar. It would be, 'Who am I?'."

She rolled her eyes. "Who are you?"

"I… I'm Pyro."

Her eyebrows shot up. Pyro. And she could understand it. But that had to mean that the mask was gone. Chinese accent. Faint, but there. Theodora crept to the door and placed her left ear against it softly.

"What are you doing here?"

"… I want… want you to know that you're not the only one. It would be lonely, to be the only one. But you're not. There's always someone there. I'm always around."

Sparky shook her head. "I'm afraid I don't understand."

"You will, I promise, swear on my heart, on my grave and my father's, you'll understand someday. Someday, not today, or even in the month, but someday…"

The voice mimicked itself down the hall as the suited thing lumbered away into the dark, leaving the woman against the door baffled and frightened.


	3. Battle

Respawn hurt. A lot. It wasn't unbearable, oh no. Just… tingly. Like your skin was replaced with needles. Momentarily, of course, as your DNA is smashed and crushed back together into cells, then tissues, then organs, then organ systems, and finally, a whole, living body.

She would never forget her first trip.

First day on the job, four days after arrival, and everyone is itching to get out on the field, let out pent up anger and energy, see how the new Class will do now that she's had her dose of the homefront. Scout's running circles around everyone, Soldier is praising his shovel. When will the damn gates open? They hold their breath when the Administrator crackles over the speakers.

"Thirty seconds until the mission begins."

Sparky knew what to do. Fight off BLU's, defend RED's, get the intelligence, don't die. How hard could it be.

"You are sweating," Heavy commented.

"Am not."

"Am too."

"Am not."

He laughed, a low rumble that rattled her feet where she stood.

"Is okay. Leetle woman will do _fine_."

He drew out the word 'fine' far too long. Someone chuckled. The smell of smoke filled the air. It was rancid to her, being used to forrest air all her life. Sniper grunted as he positioned his rifle on his shoulder, ready for anything.

"Ten seconds until the mission begins," the Administrator growled.

She gulped, then hoisted her custom gun up closer.

"This baby shoots out jets of electricity," she'd explained to Engineer the night before, "which can be used to stun, or, should the power be cranked up high enough, kill in a single shot. However, it takes time to charge up like that, so if I ever do that, I'll need some backup while I charge. This metal umbrella-like contraption on the front keeps gunfire off of my hands so if I'm still shot in the leg or shoulder, I can still go for a bit. This backpack over here is what holds all of the energy that goes into the gun. RED had it rigged so I can get it recharged at one of your dispensers should I run out of juice."

He was impressed. Just because she'd spent a lot of time chopping down trees didn't mean she didn't have time for what she truly enjoyed. Science. Lots of it.

"GO!" the echoey voice suddenly barked. Theodora was jostled from her thoughts, only to find her feet had already obeyed.

She was out of Respawn in five seconds, and she swore her heart stopped. She was actually doing this. She was actually fighting for RED in the Gravel Wars.

Sound disappeared for her. There was only the vague hum of gunfire as she rounded the corner and saw her foes for the first time.

They were identical to her team mates, only wearing blue clothing. Their base looked the same, too. The only thing she could see connecting them was a small wooden bridge.

The BLU Sniper was aiming at the Scout, who was bolting toward the bridge. The RED Sniper shot his counterpart while he was distracted.

"Boom. Headshot," he cooed.

The Heavy trotted behind and past her, and she fell behind him, walking quickly to keep up with his pace without overrunning him. A large hand held her back and hissed, "_Nein! Das ist __**mein**_ _Kamerad! Ehen, beeilen Sie sich!_"

The Medic's eyes were burning up. He was deadly serious about being separated from Heavy. His stare sent Sparky's aflare too. There was no hesitation as she smacked him across his face- hard. He reeled back, shocked. Where her nail had dug, there was blood, but the bleeding stopped quickly.

Her gut twisted at the sight. She hadn't really meant to hit him. But something about it pleased her. Pleased her that she was pushing him away.

Now she was between the Heavy and the Medic, one with a glare of murder, the other a glare of shock. But she didn't stay long. Sparky bolted around the Russian giant and down the stairs to the first floor of the base.

And there he was. The BLU Medic.

She had ran right into him, both falling to the ground in a gasping and groaning heap. When she came back to her senses, she went cross eyed to clearly see the syringe needle pointed at her forehead.

The BLU Medic huffed, pulled back a little.

"I thought you were the Scout."

She didn't hesitate to use her Electro-gun on him, which was a mistake. The pack on his back that held the Medigun fumes exploded into tiny fragments that pierced everything they encountered. Including Theodora.

Her shriek of pain was heard through the whole base, but all she heard was the smack of her head on the concrete floor. Her right eye wouldn't open. A voice echoed. It sounded like the Administrator. Something about the Intelligence being dropped. Then the RED Medic was there, staring down at her with disapproving eyes. He aimed his Medigun at her, and fired.

The red fumes encircled her like a wreath, and there was a warm, tingling sensation throughout her bones. The fragments of the BLU's weaponry popped out of her skin one by one, sight returned to her right eye. It felt wonderful and comforting, like cuddling with the ghost of a furry wolf.

The fumes dispersed, and the Medic offered her his hand.

"Come on, get up, ve don't have all day. You may have stopped zhem momentarily, but the battle is not von yet."

Theodora took his hand without thinking much about it, and he pulled her to her feet. Heavy peered around the corner. "DOKTOR!" he cried. His arm was bleeding profusely.

She had no time to thank him as the German hurried to the Russian and began to tend to him. Instead, she headed out onto the field in search for the safest route into the enemy base. Seconds ago, she had smacked him, she realized, and there wasn't even a mark where she had hit. It had been only seconds, and the mark was gone.

She was blinded by a bright blue light. It was the BLU Sniper's laser beam. She ducked to the side just in time for the shot to miss her. Sparky dug into her pocket for her pistol- more like a small shotgun- and loaded a bullet into the barrel.

"Come on out, Sheila!" the BLU taunted. "Oi promise it won't hurt but for a moment!"

She whirled around the corner, put the gun up to her eye, and fired hastily. She was lucky she pierced his shoulder. His cry of pain was music to her. She fired again, and a clean shot through his head painted the wall behind him bright crimson.

The BLU Scout flew into the base, right past the girl. Her Electro-gun stopped him in his tracks, locking up his muscles and sending waves of pain throughout his system. He collapsed, but wasn't dead. Engie came around and finished the job by dealing a harsh blow to the back of his head.

"Y'all gotta run a lot faster than that!"

She grinned, he grinned back his crooked grin. But his grin fell as quickly as it had come. He started running towards her, but it was too late. The acrid pain in her back made her vision blur permanently, and a voice hissed in her ear, "Peek-a-boo!"

The BLU Spy.

His butterfly knife was yanked from her back, and she felt the blood trickle down, but only for a moment. All feeling left her, and the last thing she saw was Engineer's horrified face as he prepared his gun to get revenge for the fallen woman.

And Respawn took her quietly, swiftly, painfully. What felt like hours to her took only ten seconds to the rest of the world. Those thousands of needles stitching her back together, atom by atom, faster than you could blink, possibly faster than the speed of light.

Einstein wouldn't approve of that.

* * *

The locker room was silent as the RED team put away their blood stained uniforms for the day. They'd lost again to the damn BLUs.

Sparky set her gun on the specialized recharge station that would give the battery a whole new life for the next day. She rubbed her back gingerly where the Spy had gotten her repeatedly, over and over again. She was supposed to know where the bastard was at all times, her eyesight was practically built for that by God himself, she assumed. But she didn't have eyes in the back of her head.

Thankfully, the team knew that well. None of them did have eyes there.

Soldier was angry beyond belief.

"WE SHOULD HAVE WON THE BATTLE! THAT LITTLE SCOUT WAS CARRYING TOO MANY BULLETS! HE WAS A CHEATER!"

"No such thing as cheatin' in war, Solly," Engineer sighed. "Yeah, there's rules, but here, some o' them don't apply."

"Yeah," Scout grumbled. "Let's just fight with our fists if rules is a thing. That'll solve all our problems."

"Scout thinks fists is solution, is no solution to Heavy," the Russian growled. "Heavy just crush in many skulls. Is no fair."

Sparky stopped.

"Then why am I here, huh?" she ground out. "If war is about being fair, then why am I here, Heavy?! War is not fair, war is about getting the advantage over the other side and getting what you want, no matter the cost, if the cost will be at least beneficial in some sort of way. That's why America hasn't bombed your ass yet, because we're too afraid of going to actual war, just like you. It won't be of any use to bomb someone who's just going to bomb you back with just as much, or more, force."

Heavy stared with glazed eyes.

"Do not want war with America. I am _with _America, not Russia."

"It doesn't matter to me," she replied quietly. "This ain't my country. You do whatever you want, big guy."

The locker room was silent. She was the last to leave, but Medic was waiting for her. She didn't acknowledge him immediately, until he started following her to her room. As she was about to go in, she whirled around and spat, "Look, I don't know what you want, but I need to get some rest before I deal with the Hell that is dinner."

"I know zhat," he barked back. "Don't you zhink I vant to get off mein feet as vell? But I'm not here to bozher you, I'm here to tell you zhat after dinner, you need to report to zhe Infirmary so zhat I can give you a proper physical assessment and transplant your heart."

"I don't need a-"

He pushed her into the wall with startling force for someone so tired.

"Yes. You do."

He stared for longer than necessary, as well as she. It wasn't until she pushed him away that they broke eye contact, and went their separate ways.

Spy was in her room. She groaned.

"Do I get any privacy around here?!" she hissed at the Frenchman.

"Not when I am around, no, you don't."

He was sitting on her bed, thumbing through the pages of a French poetry book. "I am 'ere to warn you about the surgery you are about to undergo. He's never had a female patient to perform on, so unfortunately, I'll have to give you my personal experience rather than that of another woman." He hopped off her bed and cautiously approached her.

"You are going to have a machine attached to your heart that will enable you to be compatible with a special ability we 'ave come to call the übercharge. It will temporarily make you invulnerable to all attacks, as well as the man who gives it to you. But the surgery itself is far from pleasant, I assure you. That maniac surgeon never uses morphine or anesthesia of any kind. You'll be awake for the whole thing."

The RED mercenary shuddered.

"I still see his mad glare in my dreams, Madame. Do everything you can to prepare for the operation. Heed my warning! Of such serious matters, I would never lie."

She shook her head and closed her eyes. He was probably lying. That's what he's notorious for, after all. Backstabbing, lying, getting under your skin and into your brain. That's Spy. Or, so she's heard.

* * *

Strapped down on the operating table, Sparky tested her bonds to see if they would give. The leather straps were pretty tight. A dove landed on her stomach, and she gasped partly from shock and partly from the feel of the bird's small talons. They tickled her.

The Medic chuckled in the shadows of the operating theater, sifting through his medical supplies and gadgets slowly.

"Zhis von't take long, I promise, _frauline_. I just need to find my scalpels."

"Get this animal off of me," she hissed as she thrashed to try to get the bird to fly away off of her.

"_Nein, _patience, woman. Albrecht will leave vhen I get ovah zhere. Ah! Here it is!"

With his arms full of tools, he waddled over to the table where Sparky lay, and dropped them onto the tray. "Now, Albrecht, away!"

The dove took flight into the rafters. Again, the doctor chuckled.

"Now, Mann co. hasn't been kind enough to supply me with morphine or zhe likes to dull zhe pain, so I'm afraid we'll haff to make do with zhe Medigun to numb zhe pain."

Oh God. Spy was right. Her stomach lurched at the thought of the pain to come. The Meic saw her gulp, and his expression softened.

"Ah, uh, vell… perhaps… perhaps I haff _somezhing_…"

"It's fine," Theodora choked quickly. "Let's just get this over with."

He stared again for a long moment, then shed his lab coat and snatched up a scalpel. The Medigun hummed to life, and the red fumes caressed her again, just as they had earlier in the day.

It hurt when he cut in, yes, but it was bearable. Already, though, beads of sweat began to spot her forehead. The doctor brushed them away quickly for her, then peeled the skin apart to reveal her ribs.

"Zhere ve go," Medic grunted. Then he grabbed the saw, and she yelped.

"Oh, relax," he huffed. "It vill only hurt for a moment. Besides, I offered to help you earlier, but you declined, remember?"

Yes. Yes, Sparky remembered. She was regretting it.

He began to saw through the thick bones. The sound rattled the room. She wanted to scream, but she was afraid he might accidentally cut a vital organ.

One side snapped, and she hissed through her teeth and clenched her fists. Spots danced in her peripheral vision, and when she could see and feel properly again, the Medic was sitting on her pelvis, leaning in close to her ribs to be more precise.

Sparky held her breath. As much as she wanted to shove him off and scream at him, she knew that would be a bad idea right now.

The other side snapped. She whimpered, but his bloody finger pressed to her lips shushed her.

"Zhe vorst part is ovah, _mein hübsche kleine Dämon_."

He sat up and brushed his cowlick out of his eyes and readjusted his glasses. He tossed her ribcage to the side, and she cringed as something out of sight shattered. Hopefully, not her ribs.

"Now, zhe heart." He licked his lips eagerly, and without thinking, Theodora mimicked the action.

"Zhis is my favorite part," he crooned. As soon as he touched the organ, she jumped and hissed. It felt foreign and… and… wrongly good. He closed off her major arteries and veins, then severed them from the heart, and set to work freeing the organ from the rest of its confines of fat and muscle. He held it up proudly when he was done and stared at the twitching mound of tissue.

"_Wunderbar!_" The doctor laughed maniacally. "Now, vhere did I put zhe… hmm."

He looked around. Sparky began to feel lightheaded and dizzy.

"Ah! Zhere it is!" Plucking a device from nearby, the German pierced the object into the woman's heart and held it up to the Medigun. To her surprise, even without her brain, it began to beat. Faster and faster, until it looked like it was going to explode, and then, it stopped. It was glowing red, and she was suddenly very, very afraid.

"Vell, zhat looks good."

There was a sickening plop as the organ fell back into her chest. Then, he cranked up the energy on the Medigun, and the hole in her chest began to reform. Her heart reconnected to the veins and arteries, and the ribs grew back, whiter and stronger than before. Somehow, the gun even fixed where he had torn into her clothes.

Too soon, the machine was switched off, and she mourned the loss of the feeling of being constantly healed. But, to her utter shock and disapprovement, she mourned the loss of the man on top of her even more. The Medic went to a nearby sink and began to wash his hands.

"Zhat is all. You may leave now, Miss Sparks. _Danke_."

But she stared. It had to be the warmth. She was just missing the warmth, it wasn't the Doctor that she wanted on top of her, playing with her organs. She wanted a blanket. She needed some rest. Sparky needed to sleep.

She nearly ran out of the room.


	4. Saxton

Two days later, Heavy had grabbed the Intelligence.

It took clever planning from the team, but somehow, the Medic, the Russian giant, and the Soldier had pulled it off.

Sparky was on her way to escort them back to the base when the BLU Spy yanked her to the side and covered her mouth so no one could hear them. Struggle as she may, she couldn't escape his grasp. He leaned down to her ear.

"Relax," he purred. "I won't kill you this time. But you must listen."

She stilled.

"I don't like you," he hissed next. "But I have information you desperately need."

"I don't need anything," she said behind his hand.

"You do. For this time, this information comes with no strings attached, so you know what I have in store for you. But in the future, it will cost you.

"Here it is: The rest of the BLU team is planning something… eh, 'off the legal charts', I guess. There are rules in war, but our war is different, non?"

She nodded, and he cloaked.

"The rules are about to change. The 'game' is about to get far more realistic. Prisoners of war, surprise attacks, changed strategies. Everything will change. Everything."

"And why are you telling me this?"

"To keep things interesting, of course. Someone needs to be on the inside. Besides…"

He leaned in to her ear. He smelled of cigarettes.

"You've been caught in the middle before. Non?"

She followed his silhouette with only her eyes until it disappeared around the corner. The Administrator cried out.

"RED has dropped the intelligence!"

Heavy ran out of Respawn roaring, the Medic close behind him, and Soldier a minute after. Whatever they had had going, it had failed.

The Spy had only used that to distract her from defending her teammates. She hissed, switched her Electro gun back on, and bolted into the field once again.

"Spy distracted me," she explained to the three other men.

"You should haff killed him!" the Medic cried. "Ve had it!"

"He had me pinned, there was nothing I could do!"

The German made a move to hit her, but Heavy held him back with a cautious glare. "We all know that BLU Spy is tricky. Should not blame loss on the inevitable."

It took a moment for the man to reluctantly nod.

"I'll make up for it," Sparky promised. "Watch me."

The Medic scoffed. "I'd vish you luck, but unfortunately, ve haff none."

He shoved past her as he bolted back into the field. Heavy sighed and shook his head.

"Expectations are too high," he tsked. "I think I am to blame. Doktor always expects much from me. Thinks others should do just as well. But our abilities differ, da?"

With no time to properly respond, Sparky chased after the Medic onto the field, and was abruptly exploded my one of the BLU Soldier's rockets.

"MAGGOT!" he screamed.

When she came back, she heard screaming from the Scout. She thought nothing of it at first, but then she heard the words, "Give me your clothes, man!"

That was… odd, different. The voice didn't sound like Spy's. But Scout came around the corner looking just fine. She went to greet him, ask him what had happened, but he jumped and aimed his pistol at her.

"Hey, hey, easy there, slinky!" she cried. "I ain't a BLU! Put that damn thing down, I just got outta Respawn!"

He lowered his gun quickly. "Yeah, yeah, sorry, got carried away, um, I'm gonna go guard the Intelligence, okay, okay?"

He rounded the corner before she could offer to go with him. It was… strange. She decided to follow him, just to make sure.

In the Intelligence room, everything seemed normal enough. No BLU Spies, Soldiers or- why was Scout grabbing the Intelligence?

"BLU has taken the Intelligence!"

"SHIT!" Sparky screamed, and the BLU Scout disguised as the RED bolted away. She ran after him and fired her Electro-gun, but he was just out of her reach.

"HELP ME! THE SCOUT'S A SPY!"

Demoman answered her call. One of his sticky bombs stuck to the boy, and he exploded. Demo and Sparky were both painted redder than before with his innards. She nearly vomited.

"Those blasted Spies!" Demo yelled. "Watch da bloody bastard turn blue!"

He nudged what was left of the corpse with his foot, waiting for the color change to occur.

But he never turned blue. It really was the BLU Scout wearing the RED Scouts clothes. That was further proved when the boy rounded the corner in only his underwear. Engineer was close behind him.

"What the hell was that for?!" he screamed. "Why not just get the Spy to come and do it, huh? Huh? What, are ya a pervert or somethin'? Like cross-dressin?!"

No one had an answer except for the Engineer.

"If Pyro wants to Spy check us, then there's no Spy to burn," he explained. "Just a wolf in sheep's clothing. It's a nasty clever way to get around us without us knowin', an' I never seen the likes of it before. No one's ever thought o' this."

It was an odd occurrence, but it didn't happen again.

But other things did.

* * *

The BLU Spy was right. Things were changing.

During the next day, the enemy team had taken prisoners three times to get closer to the intelligence, the usually collected enemy Engie had charged like a mad bull, and even when the BLU team had finally gotten RED's intelligence, they still tried to kill the REDs with little mercy.

That was dangerous. Respawn had a cool down period of a half hour right after battles. So if anyone was killed, they weren't coming back. Ever. RED was shaken and scared.

For the first time in forever, Scout had no words to adequately describe his anger and fear. No one did, but it was especially unnerving for Scout to have his mouth closed.

But the majority of the angry heat in the room did not come from Heavy, or Scout, or even Soldier. The loud stomping, the quick undressing and redressing, the tearing of fabric, and the slam of locker number ten told everyone that to Sparky, this meant a lot more than just potential death.

No one had the strength or courage to go after her and see why she was taking it so personally. In her eyes, that was for the best, because she had a trip to make.

Sparky had several hatchets, and she had almost buried all of them. There was forgiving her mother for leaving her alone with her father. Buried and rotted. There was the minor sexual harassment back in highschool. Dead and gone.

But there was one hatchet she never had the energy to bury. That was a good thing now, because she didn't know if she would have had the strength to dig it back up.

She hit the buzzer that would get her in contact with the Administrator. She answered immediately.

"Hm, new girl. Didn't think you'd call so soon. Here to complain about the working condi-"

"I need to see Saxton Hale about some equipment I need for upcoming missions. May I have his number or address please? It's urgent." She shifted from one foot to the next, rubbing her nose and staring at nothing with wide eyes.

The other end of the line was quiet before the older woman replied, "Does this have something to do with BLU's new behavior? Look, I've had Pauling look through Redmond and Blutarch's files, all the known rules, but they've found a loophole to every-"

"Please, just-just let me talk to Hale. I know someone that can help until you can sort this out."

"And how do you know this… person?"

Sparky sighed. Deeply, painfully.

"I've been in this situation before."

* * *

She hadn't expected to actually be invited to the man's house. Being swiftly flown to Australia wasn't in the plan at all, but she would have to make do.

Wearing a purple dress- a sign of diplomacy among the two teams- Theodora rang the bell to the large mansion with trembling fingers. What would he say? What should she say? She was a girl, after all, and quite tall for one at that. Not taller than Medic, but not shorter than Pyro. And she had muscles. That was another thing. Not like, ridiculous muscles, but it was definitely more than what Scout had.

This was the supplier of RED and BLU's weapons; she needed to choose her words carefully. She couldn't afford to push Mann co. away.

Instead of the large Australian answering the door, a small butler dragged it open, and wheezed, "Miss Sparks?"

She nodded, then stuttered, "Y-yes."

"This way, please. Oh, and don't mind the tattered hippie outfits. Mr. Hale keeps them as trophies."

It was true. There were tatters of hippie garments scattered along the walls. She tried to ignore them, but they were flashy and stank badly.

After a few more corridors, they arrived at the hall that lead to Saxton's office. The butler motioned her in the right direction, and she trailed down wordlessly. Two other assistants opened the door. She inhaled deeply, and stepped inside.

The man was sitting shirtless at his desk, wearing nothing but a hat lined with crocodile teeth, a pair of shorts and thick leather shoes, which he had propped up on his desk. His chest hair was shaped like the country they were currently in.

He didn't acknowledge her straight away, because he was busy stroking the fur of a large grizzly bear, who sat there and took it like it loved it. Then, he spoke in a deep, rumbling voice.

"HELEN! Is that you, you smoking seductress?!"

Sparky jumped back, then regained her composure.

"No, sir, I'm Miss Sparks. I'm here representing the RED team? Redmond's mercenaries?"

Saxton's face grew confused.

"You're wearing purple. Ah, so it's a diplomatic visit?!"

"Yes, Mr. Hale."

"Well, don't just stand there, young lady! Come over here and have a seat!"

It took a good thirty seconds to get across the enormous room, and she sat gingerly in a large chair across from his desk. He whistled lowly.

"My my my, Miss Barks, I didn't expect someone so beautiful to walk through my door."

"It's Sparks, Mr. Hale," she clarified with a reddening face.

"Parks, right, right. So, what can I do for you, princess?"

"I'm here to ask about some equipment for a friend of mine. They'll need it to protect RED from BLU's activities until the Administrator can-"

"You mean Helen? Ah, that's woman's always hard at work," the Australian chuckled. "Needs to let me take her to dinner one of these days! She never takes a day off, if you'll believe it."

Sparky flushed a brighter red. "Y-yes, Helen. She's working on closing some loopholes in the contract to keep BLU from killing the RED mercenaries for good. We spend enough money on electricity, food and Respawn. I don't think the Ad- Helen would want to use any more money than she has to. In the meantime, I know a person who can keep the peace. Well, at the least, prevent RED from disappearing."

Saxton yanked his feet off the desk and leaned forward with interest. "And who is this person, Parks?"

"Sparks, Mr. Hale, Sparks."

"Yes, yes, I heard you the first time, Sparks. Now who's your friend?"

Theodora stood up and walked closer to the desk so that he would have no trouble understanding her. Saxton mistook it as an advance, and leaned closer as well.

"I don't know if my friend is a boy or a girl. All I know is that they've always been there for me when I needed a conflict solved. They've always been in disguise, and they like to change their voice every time. I know it's the same person though. The height, weight, it all stays the same. They're incredibly similar to my physique, so I'm here to try on some outfits for them."

She backed away, and began pacing.

"Whatever I decide upon to hide my friend's identity, it needs to cover every last patch of skin and hair. However, it still needs to be thick and loose enough to be able to move and hide their identity. I was also wondering if they could get some… unique equipment? They prefer to work with smoke bombs, needles, rods for smacking people around- like hippies," she added for good measure. "And small knives."

Saxton nodded, deep in thought.

"So, the Ninja approach? Personally, I'd just dive right in and smack a few heads around with my bare hands! It's all it takes, really! But, if your 'friend' prefers to be an anonymous good samaritan, then I'll make do. And since Helen sent you, I'll give you a discount! Half off! How about it?"

Half off didn't matter; the Administrator was paying for it. Theodora smiled and shook his hand eagerly.

"That will do just fine, Mr. Hale. Show me your wares."

* * *

Dinner was busy as usual. Quieter, but still busy. Scout was back to his old self, rambling about how hot Miss Pauling was. Demo was drunk again, Engie was talking to Pyro, Soldier was babbling to Spy. It was normal. Well, Medic was there for once, but he stayed close to Heavy to keep away from the other mercs when something broke out. Still, it was normal.

Until Theodora crashed through the roof.

It was entirely unexpected. There was no warning at all, not even the whistle of wind being disturbed. Everyone cried out when she landed on her back on the table, bringing rubble from the ceiling down with her. She'd died on impact, as a glass had gone straight through the back of her skull. Engineer, Pyro, Spy and Sniper rushed to the Respawn room to ask her what had happened.

She seemed fine, like she wasn't surprised or attacked.

"Miss Sparks!" Engie cried. "What in the name o' Sam Hill happened?"

She only laughed as she ran her hand across the back of her neck gingerly.

"Saxton likes to make all entrances grand and eye popping. He suggested it."

"Wot'd he say about the damn BLUs?" Sniper asked.

"He'll get someone on it straightaway. An old friend of mine, actually."

"Wot's his name?"

"No clue, but just know that they're here to help. They'll be in red, so don't worry about mistaking them for someone else."

"Sounds suspicious," Spy scoffed.

"It's all we can do until the Administrator can close the loopholes in the contract. She needs both Redmond and Blutarch to come to an agreement, or compromise at least."

"But ain't ya hurt!?" Engie pressed again. "Falls like that echo throughout several respawns!"

She pressed past them, and looked back with her arms spread as a sign of no ill harm.

"Guy's, I'm fine," Sparky promised. "Now if you don't mind, I haven't eaten yet."

She ran up the ramp back to the kitchen. They stared, confused. Only earlier that day, she'd been fuming at BLU's actions.

"She must truly trust this person," Spy commented.

"Let's hope 'e lives up to 'is name," Sniper growled. "I don't want our loives depending on someone like Sparky."


	5. Plague Doctor

There was a cold breeze that night. Medic felt it blow through his window. All his doves were huddled around the other side of the room, away from the window. But he couldn't move from his spot. He had reports to do. Scout had broken his ankle again today. Saxton needed to get his employees working on some fall-proof boots.

Heavy had taken eight headshots, but there wasn't much that could be done about that. Soldier had blown himself up twice trying to rocket jump. No matter how many times he's told him not to, the crazed American would do it again. And again.

Perhaps some thicker armor would do the trick.

The air suddenly changed. An off breeze had passed him. He shrugged it off. Just the wind shifting

Sniper had taken twice as many backstabs today. Time to get him a new shield. And Pyro… oh, right. Never anything to report on him… her. It. Them?

The air shifted again. Medic grabbed his paper and a clipboard, and moved to the corner of the room. It was too cold by the window, he'd decided.

The last file was on- ach, that one. Sparky. He shook his head with disapproval. That woman was going to kill herself without Respawn. How she'd made it through the rest of the week was a mystery to him. Her pack had exploded six times, Soldier had blown her up twice, Sniper had too many kills on her. She was a disaster.

Spy had only three backstabs on her the entire time she'd been there. Not bad. But she could still use some work.

Thicker casing to her electro pack should do the trick. He'd have Engineer work on that. And perhaps some more physical training-

The Medic's eyes suddenly grew heavy. He rubbed the bridge of his nose, but it was no use. He was going to pass out. This wasn't something his own body was doing. He could smell the thick anesthetic in the room. Someone was drugging him.

He stood shakily, trying to get to the Medigun across the room, but a hand held him back.

"Good evening, docteur," the BLU Spy purred.

His eyes closed. And then he was in the BLU base, surrounded by every member of the opposing team. None of them were smiling, like they had accomplished something great. They were all business. The BLU Medic- an almost identical counterpart, save for a slightly larger nose and different hairstyle and height- smacked him across the face and scoffed.

"I was honestly expecting more of you." His German accent was far less strong, almost invisible. "Spy tells me it was too easy to drug you and bring you here."

The RED Medic struggled in his seat. "Vhat ah you all doing? Zhis is illegal!"

BLU Medic hummed, and the BLU Demoman stepped forward. He had a copy of the Teufort contract.

"This 'ere contract says, 'Let there be no prisoners of war taken during periods of conflict and held after periods of conflict end.' Says nothin' 'bout takin' prisoners after fightin' hours."

This only made the Medic struggle more.

"Release me zhis instant! Zhat, or just kill me! Send me back zhe fast way!"

"Ah, wouldn't want that, mate," the BLU Sniper chuckled. He held up a small chip that the Medic recognized immediately. His hand darted to the back of his head to find what he'd feared. They'd removed his Respawn chip. Without the chip, the next death would be his final death. The barrel of the BLU Scout's shotgun kissed his forehead.

"Yeah, ya see that? Doc here took your chip out! You still sure you wanna let me kick your bucket?"

The RED cringed away, whimpering so high that only dogs could hear him. The BLU team sniggered at the Doctor's sudden fear.

"W-vhy? Vhy ah you doing zhis?!"

The BLU Medic stated, "Your team, without their precious Medic, will undoubtedly lose more battles to us, thus ensuring a raise in pay from Blutarch to ensure a steady performance of similar quality, and overall, Builders League United's assured victory."

The men behind him cheered, and the BLU took his RED counterpart's chin in his hand.

"Redmond thought zhat he could even the odds by purchasing a tenth mercenary. Not only did he invest in a useless female, but he also spurred us to look into our contracts again and find ways to get around every tight corner and well guarded gate. It's because of your useless female that we will vin against you.

"No!" he gasped

"Consider yourself lucky, Doctor. You'll be off of the field, fed, _safe_. Absolutely _no harm_ vill come to you while you ah here."

All the BLUs backed away, save for the Soldier and Engineer. The Spy commanded them.

"Take him to the Intelligence room for tonight. It will suffice until we can erect a proper prison."

He struggled more than ever as they wheeled his chair to the dark, cold room. They set him behind the desk at the corner furthest from the door, then went to join the rest of their teammates in the recreation room.

"Any idea what we're doing tonight, Dell?" the BLU Soldier asked.

"Well, I think Scout found some dumb old movie we're gonna have a laugh about. I just gotta get the projector workin'."

"It broke again?"

"Boys are too rough with it, you know that."

"Yeah… I remember."

* * *

The doves in the RED Infirmary were quiet, which was the first indicator to Heavy that something was wrong. He'd only noticed it the third time he'd passed by the Medic's room. The door was blocked from the inside, but it only took a gentle push for the strong giant to get inside. His Doktor was not there. The doves were not in their perches.

What there was, however, was a crowd of them in the corner surrounding a figure cloaked in a dark maroon red, unlike the bright RED uniforms. It was hooded. There were white ribbons down the length of its robes, and on its back were two containers that were leaking some sort of gas. A belt lined with needles and syringes made Heavy's stomach churn. There were two buckles around its waist, and the last he could see of the figure from the back was a long metal rod.

He stepped on some broken glass trying to sneak up on the person, and they turned around slowly. He was not greeted with a face, but a mask. It looked like a bird to him; wide, tinted eyes and a long beak. The end of the beak had holes protruding from it, as if to vent air or something. The figure stood. A robotic, monotone voice greeted him.

"Fear not, my Russian companion. The Doctor has been taken by the BLUs, but I was just about to retrieve him."

Heavy growled.

"Do not trust you."

"And why is that, Heavy? That is what they call you, yes? Your team mates?"

Heavy cracked his fists, preparing for a fight. "You are in here when Doktor is not. Is very suspicious to me."

"His doves seem to trust me."

It was true; the small white birds huddled around the red person as if they were the next best thing to Medic, though half of them had gone to Heavy during the conversation.

"Is only because you look like bird."

"That's not all."

"Then what is?"

"Theodora Sparks requested I come here to protect RED while a contract loophole was solved."

It was all it took to convince the giant this stranger meant no harm. When the robed figure leapt to the window with ease and prepared to leave, Heavy called, "Wait! What do I call you?"

The figure looked back with those black tinted eyeglasses, right back at Heavy, and he shivered. Something about that mask seemed to have a dark connotation to it.

"I am here to protect the majority. I am here to do what my ancestors could not. I watch and oversee and spread the word of hope for the future."

The figure dropped a burnt, yellowed piece of paper, which fell right into Heavy's hands. He opened it, and it read in dark, thin ink, "Plague Doctor".

When he glanced back up, the Plague Doctor was gone.

* * *

In the rafters of BLU base, the Plague Doctor reached to a communication device on its left wrist and opened a station. The title was "Pauling".

"I'm in the BLU base," the Doctor said. "They have the RED Medic here somewhere. Where would he most likely be held, and how heavy will the surveillance on him be?"

In her private office, Miss Pauling responded into the microphone, "Don't forget the layout is practically the same from the RED base, except for looking less run down and being reversed. If they've been planning this, they'll have a prison set up most likely on the lower floors in the sewers, but this feels rushed. We looked over the surveillance, and it just looks like the Spy came up with it on a dime, from the looks of his conversation with the Medic. If that's the case, he'll probably be in the Intelligence room. I'd check there first. If he's not there, get me again."

"I'll contact you when he's safe in his own base," the Plague Doctor replied. "No need to talk more than we need to. Plague out."

The Doctor switched off the transmitting device, then leapt down from the rafters almost noiselessly. With light feet, the masked figure darted down the hall towards where the RED Medic would be held.

At the corner, they stopped. Someone was there, and it sounded like the enemy Pyro. He was unmasked. _He._ The BLU Pyro was a man. Light orange hair, freckles, pudgy face. Didn't look like much of a threat. When he was within arm's reach, the Doctor yanked the man into cloaked arms, and held his neck until he stopped struggling, and was still. Enough to pass out, but not enough to kill. The Doctor knew of Respawn. Didn't want any attention too early.

At the entrance to the Intelligence room, the Doctor could hear the soft, steady breaths of the RED Medic. He was asleep. Didn't seem too worried about his predicament if he was sleeping, or he'd worried himself to exhaustion. Either way, he needed to wake up. The Plague Doctor glided into the room with clicking boots, knelt down and grabbed his shoulder. The Medic woke immediately, and tried to scream. The Doctor already had his mouth covered.

"Do not scream. You'll alert the BLUs. I didn't come here for a fight, Doctor."

"YRF A PLUGUE DRCTR!" the Medic screamed behind the hand. "Away! FWAY!"

"And what is wrong with a Plague Doctor?" the red figure asked as it began to cut his binds with its free hand.

"Fruds! Frauds! Lrs! Mrdrs! All f zhm! h-hlp! HLP!"

The Doctor looked up at the Medic.

"You are calling the enemy for help when I am freeing you? I do not see your logic."

"I'd rthr be stck vth zhem thn vith you!"

"Shame. You don't have a choice, Doctor. This is my job."

The ropes broke, and the Medic sprang from where he sat and tackled the Plague Doctor with startling force, creating quite a racket before he could grab one of the Doctor's needles and jam it into its arm. He didn't have time to dispense the contents into his bloodstream, however, and the Plague Doctor yanked it out and used it on the Medic instead.

The RED mercenary's limbs went limp. He could barely get his vocal cords to function above a whisper as he was hoisted onto the Doctor's shoulders, to his dismay and disgust.

"Let… go… now."

"No, Doctor. Please stop acting like a child and put aside your hatred for me so I can get us out of here in one-"

"Chip!"

They had just made it to the exit of the Intelligence room when the mercenary recalled his respawn chip. Despite his weak appendages, he struggled to get the thing to drop him.

"Chip! Gah-Respawn! N-need… chip!"

"I will have Mann co. produce another one for you-"

"N-nein! They break it, I die! Need it… now!"

The Plague Doctor huffed bitterly. It set the Medic back in the chair and strapped him down again. The Medic didn't protest, glad to be out of its hands.

"I will retrieve the chip for you. Where is it?"

"BLU Medic vill know. Find him… find… chip…"

The red figure was already gone before the baffled doctor could finish.

* * *

Scout was right. The movie he'd fished out of storage was horrible. Half of the others had left, and the half of what was left had fallen asleep. Only the Spy, Sniper and Medic were still awake. Heavy and Soldier were fast asleep on separate couches.

The Plague Doctor scanned them all with a silent infrared scanner to detect if any of them possessed the always cool metal of the Respawn chip. Pauling said it was kept cool to refrain from irritating the mercs too badly. The Spy didn't have it. The Heavy didn't have it. The Medic didn't either. That meant it was in his Infirmary somewhere.

When the Doctor arrived there, half expecting to hear the coo of doves, it was instead surprised to see a snow white owl staring back. Well, it didn't matter. It wasn't making any noise, and that was what mattered. Again, the Doctor activated the infrared scanners, and searched for the chip. Unfortunately, a lot of the room was cool, so it would take a keen eye to find the RED's chip. Luckily, it had that. The chip was nestled in the frame of a picture of Blutarch back when he was younger. Definitely over glorified in his picture.

The owl saw the chip, and readjusted itself in its perch. It hooted. Loudly. Then screeched. Undoubtedly, the BLU Medic had heard that. A sort of alarm system.

"Damn," the Doctor growled. With another needle at the ready, it threw it at the owl, and it went silent. But it was too late. The Administrator, because it was her job, reluctantly picked up the microphone.

"ALERT! Unknown intruder in the base!"

The BLU Medic was there at the doors in the next second, and burst through, saw at the ready. Must be superstitious if he has his saw on him at this time, the Doctor thought.

"What are you!?" the BLU spat.

"Your new best friend, Doctor," the red said.

The Medic charged, clumsily and with bulk, but the Doctor easily sidestepped him and kicked him into his operating table. The Doctor whipped out the metal pole used as a weapon, and smacked the opposing man's legs out with it. The saw grazed the red fabric as he tried to retaliate, but barely created a tear. A large boot came down on the blue labcoat, and a lethal needle was shoved into the man's neck. Before the others could arrive, the Doctor pounced into the rafters and into the vents of the building- chip safe in hand.

Spy, Soldier, Pyro and Scout all came to answer the call, only to find their Medic taking a nightly trip through Respawn.

"C'mon, guys, we gotta find this shit!"

"Oui, let us move!"

* * *

"I have your chip, Doctor. We must leave. They know I'm here."

The RED Medic folded his arms and scowled. "I sent you for zhat hoping you vould die. Plague Doctors are a leech to zhis earth."

"I am not what my ancestors were. Medicine has come a long way, as you personally have seen. Besides, if I was so horrible, that medicine I gave to you earlier would still be affecting you."

The Doctor began to untie the Medic.

"I gave you just the right dose that would have gotten us back to the RED base without any conflict, but then you sent me on that mission for your chip. But, come to find out from Miss Pauling, you could have had another one made anyways. If I am the enemy, then why are you lying to me?"

"You ah a scoundrel."

"If you insist. But bear in mind that I have demonstrated nothing but compassion for you and your team mate, the Heavy."

The binds came undone. This time, the Medic did not run.

"You spoke vith_ mein_- zhe Heavy?"

"He spotted me in your infirmary chatting with your doves to find out what had happened to you. I assure you, I treated him far better than you, because he was cautious and gave me time to speak."

The Doctor grabbed his arm and hurried out of the infirmary down to the sewers. It'd be the fastest and safest way to escape until the Medic could have his chip installed again.

The BLU Heavy was waiting for them, Sasha in hand. The Doctor had only enough time to pull the Medic back before he opened fire.

"COME AND GET SOME!" the large man screamed. He sounded Greek, actually.

The Medic glared at the Doctor. "Any ideas, _dummkopf_?"

"Many, my RED companion."

The Doctor was grabbed roughly by the RED and he hissed, "Do not call me zhat! I am _not_ your companion!"

The robed figure pulled away gently from the doctor's grasp, then took a small, powdery sack and several small knives.

"How good is your aim, Doctor?"

"Poor."

"Good enough."

The Doctor handed him a knife.

"When I throw this smoke bomb, throw the knife. Understood?"

"You trust me not to stab you?"

"Your life_ does_ depend on it."

The bomb was thrown, the powder enveloped the Heavy, and then he was down- one knife in his head, another in his heart, and one last one in his stomach. No one knew who threw what, but what mattered was that he was dead.

The Plague Doctor hummed with approval at their work, then grabbed the Medic again and hurried down the stairs.

"The water is shallow enough to walk, but we're going to crawl to reduce noise."

"I vill do vhat I vant!"

"Not with me, you won't. Unless your life doesn't matter enough to you. They're coming as we speak. They'll see their Heavy dead, and they'll be lead here. Little noise will throw them off our trail."

So they both sank into the water, one after the other, and moved as swiftly as deemed safe. They were just out of sight when the Spy made it to the bottom of the stairs, practically sniffing for them.

But he saw the ripples. He knew.


	6. Blackmail

"We'll return you to your base through the sewers as well," the Plague Doctor explained to the Medic in a hurried whisper. "I've asked Miss Pauling to alert your team to your arrival so they do not panic and fire hastily."

"Only me?"

"I don't need a welcome home party."

The Medic nodded. But the Doctor suddenly held him back. The sound of water didn't stop as quickly as it should have. The masked thing leaned in as close as it could with the beak and all, and breathed:

"The Spy is behind us. Keep moving. Just like that. Go ahead of me. I'll hold him back. Don't get shot. Sniper may be looking out for you."

The Respawn chip was slipped into his breast pocket, and it took all his willpower not to jump back and scream at the monster.

The Medic slowly inched ahead of his savior, until they were a good four feet apart. That's when the Doctor knew the Spy was just above, and striked.

The butterfly knife dug into the Doctor's shoulder, but there was no sound of pain or complaint, only retaliation as the water sloshed in the narrow tunnel. The Medic now knew fear, and dove under the surface as soon as the water was deep enough.

He would make it back safe.

The Spy stumbled as the Doctor pulled out his legs from under him, and he hit his head on the concrete floor Blood stained the back of his mask, but he was again above the surface in no time. The Doctor was pushed against the curved wall, and the small knife shook towards its head as it struggled to keep the BLU off of it.

Death would be disastrous. Not here. Not here.

The knife scratched off some paint from the mask, but that was all. The Doctor planted a good kick in the Spy's jewels, and the offender crumpled. With this moment of weakness, the masked figure stole the knife from limp hands, stabbed the man in his back, and kept him under the water until he ceased to struggle and his lips had turned blue. Just like his now stained suit.

The Doctor stared until the last bubble of air had left the victim. Then swam out of the tunnel and onto the RED shore.

Slowly, the Plague Doctor stood. And just as slowly, the transmission device was activated.

"The RED Medic is secure, Miss Pauling. Please have a Medigun ready for me."

"Of course."

* * *

He was given a towel and a hot cup of cocoa as soon as he emerged from the water, safe in his own base. There were many concerned voices scolding, praising, worrying. But overall, everyone was just glad he was safe. Heavy could just barely keep everyone away from him as he and Engineer escorted him to the Infirmary to get him fixed up and his chip reinstalled.

Engineer reinstalled his Respawn chip for him, and commanded him to get some sleep, that he could finish his reports in the morning. "It's damn near two in the mornin' anyways. No sense in wracking your brain at that time o' day."

But it took Heavy's deep, firm voice for the Medic to realize his exhaustion and finally sucumb to their wishes. It also required the secret promise from Heavy that he would spend the whole night with him, and that he wouldn't have to lift a finger as they made love.

Heavy had made the excuse that he would make sure the doctor wasn't taken again, and Engie bought it. Really, he was too tired to question the giant's motives.

As he went down the hall back to his own room, one door creaked open, and he stopped. It was Sparky's room. They'd made sure not to wake her during the ruckus. But she was awake now.

"En…gie?" she yawned. "What's going on?"

He leaned against the door frame and placed a hand on her shoulder. She cringed slightly.

"It looks like your friend finally showed up, darlin'. Calls himself the Plague Doctor these days."

"What happened?"

"Medic got snatched right from the Infirmary by the damn BLUs. But with that guy around, we're sure it won't happen again. Funny, though."

"What?"

"Medic doesn't seem to take too fondly to the guy. Callin' him all sorts of useless names, like 'fraud' and 'monster' and… well, I just guess he's got a thing against Plague Doctors. They weren't really the most effective Doc back in their day."

She nodded, and yawned again. Engie chuckled.

"I think you best be gettin' back to bed, darlin'."

"Yeah, ok."

"Nighty night then."

"Good night, Engineer."

* * *

Miss Pauling stopped by the next day, much to their surprise.

"I heard about what happened last night, and I really don't approve. But until Blutarch and Redmond can come to a compromise on the contract, this is the best we can do."

She handed out documents- one to each mercenary. "These detail some protocols you should assume should the BLUs be acting suspicious in any shape or form. It may be a while before their next major move, so it will give you time to do some drills on these."

"Wh-wha- ROOMMATES?!" Scout screamed. "Are you fucking kidding me!? No- there's _no _way in _**hell**_ that I'm sharing a room with one of these loud mouthed, no good-"

"Are you offering to be their next victim, Scout?" Pauling seethed. "Because frankly, I'm more than fine with that."

"Eh, we get to, uh, _pick_ our roommates, right?" Engie asked quietly.

"If it will make you more comfortable, but some of you have already been assigned roommates, and during curfew, no one else is allowed in your rooms."

Several faces paled at the thought. The Medic immediately came forward.

"I vould like zhe Heavy to be my roommate. It vould be fascinating to be able to perform more experiments on him vith zhe increased amount of time togezher."

Miss Pauling paled, too. Medic was not going to like her next statement.

"I-I'm sorry, Medic, but you are one of the assigned mercenaries."

"Eh, come again, _bitte_?"

"Your roommate has already been designated. Because you are the doctor of the team, it seems only logical to put you with the female of the group. You'll be boarding with Miss Sparks."

"WHAT!?" the girl cried. "No! I can't do that!"

"You can't do zhat!" the Medic screamed at Pauling.

"I hate him!"

"She is a _keine gute kleine Prostituierte!_"

"Did you just call me a whore!?"

"No, I called you a prostitute!"

"ENOUGH."

The two mercs went quiet, biting their tongues profusely. Pauling straightened slightly.

"Heavy, you will share a room with Scout. To keep him under wraps. You're the only one I trust to do that. Engie will board with Soldier, same reason as Heavy and Scout. All other mercs have their choice of boarding as long as it is here on base and NOT in a camper van. Sorry, Sniper. You'll have to bid it goodbye for a little bit."

"Ah, piss."

"All other major changes to protocol are listed in the documents I've just distributed. As you were, boys."

She saluted Soldier out of habit (though he'd stopped bugging her about that long ago), then turned to leave the base. Medic and Sparky stopped her with shaking hands.

"You can't make us share a room, Pauling. I'm telling you, it won't work."

"It vill cause more harm zhan good, I assure you."

"I'm sorry guys," she explained, "but I'm just following orders, just like the rest of you. If it were up to me, I'd take Sparky back to my apartment to keep her away from all these men. I don't get why you want this. This place is full of guys. How do you handle the shower room?"

"I go after they're all gone. Water freezes like hell."

"Do you zhink perhaps zhere is any ozher possible arrangement?"

The small woman shook her head sadly.

"We could be sued for a dangerous work environment if we put her with anyone besides you, Doc. Just find a way to split up whatever room you'll be sharing, and I think you'll do fine."

She walked towards the exit doors of the RED base, then stopped with one final thought to share.

"It could be worse, Medic. You could be dead, had the Plague Doctor not come to get you."

"Vould zhat alternative really be zhat bad?"

* * *

The final layout the RED mercs came up with was, of course, Medic and Sparky, Heavy and Scout, and Engie and Solly. The ones that had choice sorted themselves logically enough: Pyro and Demo, and Spy and Sniper. As much as Spy hated Sniper, he'd rather be with him than with the unpredictable Pyro and the always drunk Demoman.

So it was with grumbling voices and heaving breaths as some mercs emptied their rooms to be with another. And Medic, being the gentleman he was towards Sparky, had _her _move in with _him_.

"You could- help- you know," she gasped between steps as she carried a chest of her belongings to the Infirmary. Medic's room was just off to the side of it.

"I could, but I zhink zhe physical workout could do you some good," he countered. "I'll at least hold open zhe door for you."

"What a man," she sarcastically replied as she rolled her eyes. Suddenly, the weight decreased to almost nothing, and then the case was pried from her arms by a very dissapointed looking Heavy.

"Doktor is no man if he does not help woman, whether she is leetle or not."

He dropped the case into the Medic's arms, who huffed as he struggled to hold up the chest. Less so than Theodora, but still.

"Doktor will take case to room."

"_Nein_, Heav-"

"Da. You will!"

Sparky came between them. "Look, big guy, it's no big deal-"

"We will get bed together. Come."

He didn't need a reply as he lumbered down the hall back to the woman's room. It was an excuse to get away from the Medic, which was all she needed. They lifted the bed together.

"You didn't need to stick up for me," Sparky chastised the Russian.

"Woman should not have to do much. You fight, is good. But when they can, let men do work. Make Medic be a man."

"I can handle myself."

"I know, which is all the more reason to make him work. Is spoiled sometimes. Maybe you can show him better light?"

The look in his eyes seemed sad, yet hopeful, like he was expecting a no but wishing for a yes. Before they trotted through the Infirmary doors, she grumbled:

"I'll try."

It was enough to Heavy, who sighed with relief.

* * *

"Ve may not like each ozher, but at least I am fair," the RED scoffed. "Zhis is your half, zhis is _mein_. Is zhere any confusion, _frauline_?"

There were feathers stapled to the floor to emphasise the line between them.

"As long as your pigeons don't bother me," she shrugged.

"ZHEY AH NOT PIDGEONS! Zhey ah DOVES!"

"Same to me, Doc."

He attempted to shove her, but she backed over the line that separated them.

"Oop! No crossing!" she taunted.

"I vill pump so many toxins in your blood, you vill not know light from dark!" the Medic ground out. Sparky just shrugged.

"Sniper's taking people into town if they need anything before we basically lock down. I'm good to go, so if you need something for your sore ass, hop in his van."

He had begun to fold some lab coats when she said that, and he glanced over his shoulder at her. "And who said I haff a sore arse?"

"Your behavior. And also that box of sex toys I saw you move before I came in here."

She grinned broadly, evilly as the Medic froze in a terrified daze.

"Yeah. I saw it. Didn't know you liked it like that, Doc. I wonder what the rest of the team would think?"

"You wouldn't." he trembled.

"Yeah, you're probably right. But what I _really _want to know is what _Redmond _would think."

His gulp of trepidation was music to her ears.

"But then again, you'd _probably _lose your job. The rest of the team wouldn't want that."

"I'll kill you a zhousand horrible deaths before-"

"Ooh, I wouldn't threaten me if I were you," she chanted. "You might want to change your attitude about me just a _little _bit. That is, if you like it here like I think you do. And if you like big, fat, plastic-"

The pale German bolted out of the room with unsteady steps to the other side of the Infirmary, and suddenly was very interested in a bottle of kidneys.

* * *

Every team member except for the Pyro went into town. It was a loud ride, save for the Medic, who was staring at Sparky with wide, pleading eyes. Heavy seemed quieter too, but Scout made up for the loss of sound with his constant nagging and complaining, so no one noticed.

What Theodora noticed when they stepped out of the van was that the town members gave them confused looks, disgusted glares, and frightened body language. Everywhere she looked, no one was smiling at them. She went over to Sniper.

"Why are they looking at us like that?"

"Eh? Oh, them. Uh, we, uh, may'ave dropped off a few bombs where they shouldn't have a few Smissases ago."

"An' they're sick of the Gravel Wars," Scout added. "All the explosions and screams don't seem to do these people any favors."

"I… see."

Spy laid a hand on her shoulder, but she smacked him away.

"Are you sure you 'see'? Because if you don't then you are certainly in the right profession, _mademoiselle_."

"Hehe, funny. Go get your baguettes or whatever, you slimy snake."

Spy sneered.

"'Oh, look at me! I'm so cool because I'm the first woman to fight in the Gravel Wars! Come and _fuck my virgin pussy_!'"

Everyone turned and stared, much to her embarrassment. Save for the Medic. She could see him grinning, though he wasn't looking at her. A gynecological scan was a part of her checkup with the Medic when she'd first arrived. Undoubtedly the Medic had told the Spy to get revenge for her blackmailing.

She shoved past them all with a beet red face, and as she passed Medic, she muttered, "Touche."

The doctor laughed bitterly.

"Everyvone here vill deserve zhe proper treatment zhey deserve from me."


	7. Close Call

The church in the town was open that day, to be cleaned and aired out. Theodora had already done all her necessary shopping, so she headed in. It was a good way to get out of the sun and talk to a very close friend of hers.

In the chapel, before the tinted window of Jesus, she knelt to her knees and folded her arms, just like her dad had taught her.

"Mom?" she began. "Hi, It's me. Teddy. Uh, Theodora. Uh, yeah, how are you up there? I know you're up there. You have to be. You worked to be good, and you died doing a good thing. You were protecting us, just like I know you are now. And I'm thankful for you always looking over me and Dad, because I don't know where we'd be if you weren't.

"I got the job I told you about. The one with Mann co, in America? I knew you'd be proud of me, for doing what I wanted. You always told me to do what _I _wanted. Daddy must've forgot, because he was always holding me back. Afraid to let go."

"That's why I'm so reckless, that's why I'm not afraid to die. Because you won't let me, but if you slip and I do, then you'll be up there waiting for me. I'm not scared."

Her breath trembled.

"I'm not scared to die. No. I- I'm just not ready."

Shortly after, she bid goodbye, then turned her attention to the piano in the chapel. She was no expert by any means, but she could play. And Momma would _love _to hear her play, Just like when she was alive.

So she pulled out the bench, sat down, opened the covering to the keys, and began to play. The world slowly dissolved around her, and the keys became acrid to her sight, and it was easy to see which ones to peck and poke. They illuminated the small world around her like stars dancing in the ocean's waves, and the sound was her own mother's voice, humming to her, just as it did when she was small, and the world was innocent.

Up and down she scaled the keys, and up and down she would search and press for the right tune, the right melody to accompany her feelings. Joy. Anguish. Loneliness. Desire. Lust. Every feeling that conflicted her was poured into the keys.

It did not go unnoticed.

At first, she thought she was imagining the sound of the violin accompanying her. And she praised her imagination. _How clever you are! _she thought. _How clever and imaginative!_

But the sound came closer, and she knew it was real. But she did not falter in her playing. She changed the tune and pace, to see if the violin could keep up.

It did. Very well. The transition was near flawless. And the sound was sharp and beautiful.

She changed keys again, and slowed her pace. The violin followed like a lost puppy.

And again. And again. And again.

The room grew hot, much hotter than it should have been, like they were in a desert rather than a church, under the sun rather than a roof, judged by the snakes rather than God.

She slammed the keys and stood up angrily.

"Why are you here?! What do you want, Medic!?"

He stared back with narrowed eyes and crossed arms, violin still tucked under his chin.

"I vant you to know zhat zhis has nozhing to do vith you, only zhe music. I can't resist playing along and testing my limits."

She rolled her eyes. "Sure, Doc. Sure."

"I mean it, Miss Sparks."

The woman walked from the room. "Uhuh. See you back at Sniper's van."

"If we're going to board togezher, ve should at least learn how _not _to piss each ozher off."

"Don't care. You revealed a personal and alluring secret about me to _everyone_. I'm going to go out of my way to make _sure_ we stay enemies."

The doors clicked shut behind her, and the Medic was left alone.

But this place scared him. According to the Bible, God wouldn't want him here. He left too, and with no shortage of speed and urgency.

* * *

She didn't think that the Medic would be fine changing in front of her when night rolled around, so she was surprised when she walked into their room to find him slipping off his button down shirt. He wasn't worried in the slightest.

"Hello," he said.

"Hi."

She went to her bed, setting a glass of water next to it. Then his pants came off. She turned away when he looked at her, and he snickered.

"Embarrassed?"

"It's not right."

"It's zhe human body. It is natural, so it's not wrong in any vay."

He pulled on some sweatpants, then grabbed his violin and played what sounded like Bach. Theodora rolled her eyes, grabbed her nightgown, and left the room to change.

"This is going to be horrible."

"I'll play you to sleep if you vant, you poor baby."

"Go fuck yourself."

Theodora closed the door to the bedroom, then went behind some curtains in the infirmary to change. But then she remembered that she hadn't showered yet, so changed her plans and headed to the shower room.

Again, she wasn't alone. At least now she was getting used to it.

Engineer was already in there, scrubbing his buzz cut head with quick, rough movements. They were surprised to see each other.

"You're a little late," Sparky commented.

"So are you, darlin'. Well, don't be a stranger. You said you wanted to be treated like one o' the boys. Good way to start is to get used to co-bathin'."

There was no trace of awkwardness in his voice as he returned to his scrubbing. And, being a straight woman, her eyes couldn't help but scan his body quickly. Stocky- well, she knew that. A little chubbier than she'd thought, with the overalls covering him and all. Strong, curved, sunkissed back, and- oh, don't look there. You're better than that.

Her throat tightened uncomfortably as she peeled her uniform off quickly and hopped into the tile room two shower heads away from Engie. But as time drew on, she realized that he wasn't staring at her, and she began to relax. It really wasn't that bad, she guessed. They were both humans, after all. And this is how it used to be four thousand years ago. No one worried about 'covering up'.

The doc was right. It's just the human body. It's natural.

His voice startled her when he spoke up again.

"What's the deal between you and the Doc, kid?"

Sparky's hands dropped from her head. "He seems incredibly sexist to me. I feel like he doesn't think I can get the job done, and that's not-"

"I was referrin'' to the Plague Doctor, darlin'."

"Oh, that doc. Well, not much to tell, really. Whoever he or she is, they've just been around whenever I needed them. Started poking its head around before-"

Her breath caught. _Before. _That's all it was. _Before_.

"Before what?"

"Before things went south. Literally. We moved south, and it followed me like a shadow."

"Sounds iffy to me."

"I trust him…her…it."

"How can you trust a person if you don't even know what baggage they're carrying around?" Engie glanced over with a stern expression.

"I'm not dead yet," she replied.

"That ain't enough. Look, he- she- the guy's done good so far, but I ain't showin' my cards to the fella until I'm certain this is a thing we can trust."

"That's okay."

"How do ya know it's okay with your 'friend'?"

"He- it's used to it."

* * *

The breeze woke him up, and the Spy was afraid that the BLUs had come for him. But the window was just open. No signs of other Spies. No stench of expensive cologne. But who opened the window?

Wait a minute- medicine. It smelled like medicine. And as soon as he realized it, _it _was there. He scrambled from his bed and pressed his back to the door of the room, careful not to wake Sniper. It was a bad move to wake that guy up early in the morning.

"So, you finally decide to reveal yourself to me," the Spy whispered.

"You would have found me anyways," the Doctor responded. "Being the Spy of the REDs and all, I'm certain you would have found a way to track me down sooner or later."

"Oui. You 'ave studied us quite well. I'm impressed. For a mere _ninja_ of sorts."

"Listen to me carefully, because I will not repeat this. I need a man on the inside- a man I can trust to keep our personal relations a secret."

"You have come to the right mercenary," the Spy chuckled. He grinned at the thought of collaborating with this mysterious figure. Finding out who they are. Showing their face to the world and watching them bleed and sob.

"I will do as you ask, Docteur."

"Good."

The robed figure handed the Frenchman a photograph of the Infirmary, and an area behind some crates was circled.

"Do not try to find the device. I've set it up specifically so that only your voice can reach it. This is where you will go to report any suspicious activity to me."

"Define 'suspicious'."

"Anything out of the ordinary. You know these men well enough. If something looks off, do _not _engage. Warn the others, then warn me. If an attack seems inevitable, tell me."

"So if a mouse barks at a stray pussy, then I should holler?"

"You know what I mean, you smar- you simpleton."

The Spy quirked an eyebrow.

"Your facade almost slipped, _monsieur_."

"Who said I was a man?" the Plague Doctor replied. Neither of them had time to respond as the red figure leapt from the window. When the Spy darted to see where the thing had gone, it had vanished.

"_Baise-moi._ He's quick."

* * *

The BLUs had toned down their illegal shenanigans for the day, which was a Godsend to the REDs. Either way, they were still struggling.

It was two weeks after the new guidelines had been implemented in the RED base. Two weeks of readjusting, bickering, awkward silence, and difficult change. Spy had gone through twice as many cigarettes, and Sniper had found a reassuring friend in silence. Soldier was as cranky as ever, which forced Engineer to double his efforts to keep the crazed American under control.

The Plague Doctor, much to everyone's relief, was there wherever there was trouble. There when Soldier tried to man a full frontal attack on the BLUs, there when Engineer nearly killed himself trying to tamper with Respawn to build an army, there when Spy got caught snooping and was having his Respawn chip removed. Many had begun to sleep much better with the idea that he-she-it was around.

Medic was still set on the fact that **he** was a horrible person.

Engie was liking **her** more and more.

And Scout not only grabbed the intelligence, but _captured _it too. All thanks to a plan that the Spy had devised based on his encounter with the Doctor.

"Stay close to the corners," he had advised the boy. "Keep your feet quiet and your mouth shut. I will encourage the others to launch a full attack to keep them occupied."

And it had worked.

While nearly every able bodied BLU was crushing the REDs, Scout kept his mouth shut and his feet quiet. He saved his energy until he had the Intelligence.

"RED has taken the Intelligence!"

By the time some BLUs had broken away to get the Scout, he was too close to be stopped. He came from underneath, through the sewers, and back into the RED base. Soldier and Demoman escorted him the rest of the way until he could slam the blue case down next to the red.

The sound reverberated.

All sound on the field seemed to cease while they waited for the Administrator to announce the news. Fighting ground to a near hault. Nineteen pairs of eyes looked to the speakers expectantly.

"... RED has captured the Intelligence!"

There was only silence at first.

Then the sudden eruption of laughter, cries of elation, screams of disbelief and joy, followed by similar, negative sounds from the BLU team. Hugs were shared, even some tears shed.

The chips in their necks vibrated to let them know Respawn was temporarily disabled.

And BLU took advantage.

Their Heavy lunged for the nearest RED- which happened to be Medic.

His scream of agony and fear tore them from their celebration, and they hurried to take him from the BLU Heavy's grasp. He was trying to break his neck. But they couldn't pry him away, and he was losing the fight to keep his neck on straight. BLUs started chanting something in German, due to the spurring on from their Medic.

"_Tötet die Schweine! Schneiden Sie den Hals! Spill sein Blut!_"

"HELP! PLEASE! SOMEVONE! _**HELP!**_"

"_Tötet die Schweine! Schneiden Sie den Hals! Spill sein Blut!_"

Scout scrambled for his bat.

"_Tötet die Schweine! Schneiden Sie den Hals! Spill sein Blut!_"

Heavy was too afraid to do anything, afraid he would hurt the doctor.

"_Tötet die Schweine! Schneiden Sie den Hals! Spill sein Blut!_"

Soldier was laughing, but his expression told otherwise.

"_Tötet die Schweine! Schneiden Sie den Hals! Spill sein Blut!_"

A loud crack echoed in the area. The Medic wheezed fitfully, and his vision glazed over. His entire rib cage had been fractured.

Sparky opened fire with her Electro-gun. Both the BLU Heavy and RED Medic were given a "healthy" dose of electricity- enough to make the giant let go. The RED doctor crumpled to the ground in a disoriented heap. The two Heavies began to struggle with one another over the unconscious man while the rest of the team struggled to get the Medic to safety.

"GET 'IM OUTTA HERE!" Demo screamed. "Get 'im away from da bloody bastards!"

But BLU was determined to take their only source of regeneration. It was only Sparky and Medic who made it back to the base while the rest of RED defended the fleeing mercenaries.

She barricaded the doors to Respawn with a sick twist in her gut.

_Please, please, Mom, don't let any of them die. I'm safe now. Go help them!_

Theodora turned her attention to the doctor unconscious on the ground, and realized that she could probably help him with his own gun. She unholstered the Medigun and aimed it at him, only to realize that it was a complicated piece of machinery and that she hadn't paid attention to how it worked. It took some fumbling, but she found the lever, and aimed the healing beam at the German.

The bruises on his neck vanished. His chest- which looked badly crooked- rearranged itself from under his skin. But he did not wake. He was healed, though, and that's what mattered.

The woman leaned against the wall across from him heavily, heart still pounding. He could have died. _He could have __**died**_.

A part of her thought that was fine. But most of her was screaming that it was wrong. That he should live. Needed to live. She wanted him to live. But she hated him. But really, she didn't. But she was just telling herself she did to keep him away. Keep him from feeling the same.

The rest of the team had entered through a secret back entrance by the time the Medic was properly revived by Sniper and Engie. She was unresponsive, the least she could give was uncertain nods. "Battle shock," an unusually quiet Soldier called it. She'd get over it, but it'd be best if the Medic were to help treat it once he was back on his feet and of sound mind again.

But it was her thoughts of the doctor that ran rampant in her mind that had immobilized her. No battle she had been in thus far was bad enough to do this.

One team member knew this well. He stared down the hall as a hunched, limping Medic guided the woman to the Infirmary. Then he stamped out his cigarette, and left to his own quarters.


	8. Truths Revealed

"What were they saying?" Theodora asked him when she could think straight again. "What were they chanting when their Heavy had you in a Deathlock?"

They were both sitting under the mounted Medigun in the Infirmary, waiting for their physical ailments to die down to mere aches and their mental instabilities to numb. The Medic sighed.

"Ve don't need to discuss zhat right now."

"I want to know. Look, I saved you from that giant. It's the most I'll ask of you in return. Please, Doc."

He paused for a moment, thinking.

"Have you read zhe book _Lord of the Flies_?"

"What does this have to do with-"

"Have you?"

She paused, too, uncertain of the direction of his answer.

"... yes."

"Do you remember vhat zhose boys vere chanting as zhey danced around the spitting flames of zheir fire? As zhey reduced zhemselves to nozhing more zhan natives?"

"I… I think…"

"_Kill zhe pig. Cut his throat. Spill his blood._"

As they were sitting back to back, they could not see one another's expressions. But he could feel the shiver run through her. She could feel him tense.

"_Kill zhe pig._"

A dove fluttered in the rafters.

"_Cut his throat._"

The Medigun was turned off by shaking hands.

"_... Spill his blood._"

Then, it hit her.

"And then they **killed** Simon."

"Yes. And zhen zhey killed **Simon**."

The Medic stood, stripping his bloodied gloves from his hands and dragging himself to the dirty clothes bin.

"Simon vas zheir first kill. Intentional, zhat is. Zhere vas a _kinder _before who vas presumed to haff died in a fire. Simon had done _nozhing _wrong, and yet he vas zhe first casualty. Only by being in zhe wrong place-"

"At the right time," Sparky finished. "Are you implying that the BLU Medic is trying to start a sort of revolution? He is the one who started the chant."

"I am implying nozhing." His lab coat sank to the floor. "Vhat I _am _saying is zhat ve should be more watchful of our surroundings in zhe future. You never know vhat you may run in to."

"You almost died."

"But I didn't." His shirt joined the rest of the clothes, and his chest was bare, save for the blood that had soaked through all his layers. "Zhanks to you, zhat is."

The Medic turned around, and his expression was soft, inviting, sincere.

"I am truly grateful, Miss Sparks. Truly, I am."

"I just look out for my own," she muttered, gaze locked elsewhere.

"You ah exhausted. Perhaps you should go and lie down."

"I'll make it through the rest of the night," she promised. "I just need some grub."

The Medic slipped on a simple white T-shirt and shrugged. "Do vhat you vill. Vhizhout a medical license, I am in no position to give doctor's 'orders'. Just recommendations. I _highly_ recommend some rest, but I can't force you."

Archimedes landed on his shoulder swiftly, and they both exited the room. Sparky turned the Medigun back on and layed down on the gurney. She was going to need _a lot _more healing.

* * *

"Engie, I need a favor."

The Texan man chuckled lightly from under one of his dispensers.

"Everyone needs a favor from me, darlin'. 'Specially after we almost lost the Doc."

Sparky folded her arms and shook her head. "It's not like that. I need you to build something for me."

"What do ya need, miss? Bigger battery, your own bathroom?"

"If you'd come out from under there, I'd show you."

So he wriggled his way from under the dispenser, took off his hardhat and lifted his goggles onto his forehead. "Got a blueprint?"

"Got more than a blueprint, Engie. I got the parts, too. I'm just not smart enough to put it together. Here."

She handed him the paper with a sweaty, shaking hand. He noticed.

"Somethin' wrong?"

"Depends on how you handle this."

The man stared at her with narrowed, concerned eyes, then scanned the paper. The more he looked, the more he felt something was off.

"You gonna use this on the field?"

"Not a chance."

"Sightseein'?"

"Maybe someday, but is more… business related right now."

He pointed at a section of the plan.

"These slots only fit one kinda boot, an' I know you don't have that. Firm grip rubber, real hard to get. And to not put any kinda insulation on the bar is suicide, unless you want your hands rubbed off from holdin' on."

"I know what I'm doing." A gust of anxiety left her nostrils in a swift exhale. "This is going to be usable for only one person, and I don't trust Mann co. to make it and not mass produce it. I have everything you'll need, so if something's off, just tell me."

Rubbing the bridge of his nose, Engie flipped over the sheet to see if it was truly her design, and found her signature. But he also found why she was so nervous about it. It was the pattern she wanted on the fabric. He froze. She froze.

And he knew.

"I… you… you, uh, uhum." He was at a loss for words.

An eternity of silence passed. But Theodora was patient. She could wait.

"... When do-when do ya want me to start?"

A relieved sigh parted her sealed lips.

"Soon. I feel like the Doctor's going to need it."

"An' what makes ya think that, Miss Sparks?"

Directing him to the window, she pulled out a pair of binoculars and directed his sight to a large hill not far away.

"We can't see past it, but Spy has been dropping hints that the BLUs may be building something over that hill. I don't know what, but it's some distance aways. The Doctor will need swift entry back into RED to get any captured mercs back in their bunny hole. Your teleporters, as useful as they are, aren't long range like they need to be. This seems to be the only way."

Engie scratched his chin. It sounded like he was growing a beard, but the hair was too light and thin to be seen yet.

"I'll work with every minute o' spare time. I'll need to run some tests on it though, so don't expect the first prototype to be your answer. It may fall apart when you least need it to."

Sparky smiled.

"Thank you so much, Engie. Really."

"Awe, don't mention it. Now get outta here, girl. If Scout were to see you here, we would never hear the end of whatever garbage he comes up with."

"Right."

He waved her goodbye as she closed the door softly behind her, then stared at the blueprints again. A familiar glint brightened his eye, and he smirked crookedly.

"Smart girl," he commented.

* * *

Dinner was quiet, subdued. Most were just a little shaken from having their Medic almost killed, but some just didn't have the strength to make much conversation. Scout was the first to say anything, and it was just to get Heavy to move so he could grab a second sandwich. Sniper looked perfectly happy in this environment.

Pyro kept trying to get Sparky's attention. It seemed urgent. But she was beginning to nod off into her food, so she hardly noticed. It wasn't until Demo nudged her that she saw Pyro summoning her. She excused herself from the table, grabbed another sandwich, and followed the suited merc into its room.

"It's been a while since you've talked to me," she stated. "Is everything okay?"

They Pyro tore off the mask, and Theodora gasped.

The RED Pyro was a girl. Chinese. She had horrible burn scars trailing down the right side of her face. Her hair was black, cut short. Not as short as Sparky's, but short.

"I get to see a lot when people aren't always talking to me," the Pyro explained. "And I know who the Plague Doctor is. I saw him taking off his mask, and I _saw_."

"Who!?" she asked excitedly.

"I think it's Medic!"

Sparky's head jerked back. "That's not possible. Medic was the first merc the Doctor _saved_. For you to be right, there'd have to be _two _RED Medics."

"But I saw him in the infirmary! He took of the hood, and then the mask-"

"You're confused, Pyro," she said. "Maybe he _looks _like Medic, but he _isn't _Medic. Did you see his face?"

That caught her. "No."

"It couldn't be the Medic, Pyro. Nice try, though."

"I think it _is _one of us, though," Pyro clarified. "It's gotta be."

"You can tell me if you see anything."

"I will, I promise, I'll tell you everything… that I… see…"

The Chinese girl's eyes became glassy, like she was seeing something that wasn't there. No matter how much Theodora tried to talk to her, she wouldn't respond. After a while, she just gave up, knowing that she'd come back to the present eventually, and left the room quietly.

Then she wondered if Demo knew he was sharing a room with a girl. It made her laugh.

* * *

_Six weeks later ~_

"You need to sleep," the Medic urged her.

"I can't."

Part of the problem was that Teufort was beginning to cool down as Fall rolled around. Part of the reason was that she was restless with recent events. And the one part she'd never tell him is that she'd be too distracted staring at him as _he _slept. His usually rigid composure became relaxed and calm. It made him handsome.

"Is zhere anyzhing I can do to help?"

"Just worry about yourself, Doc. I just have restless legs."

"Perhaps you require a massage of your tendons. Zhat alvays seems to help me."

Theodora hissed. "Don't touch me."

"So it is your mind zhat needs calming."

How could he tell just from her reply? Before she could begin to figure it out, the soft sounds of his violin kissed her ears and bade her to go to sleep. But it wasn't much longer after until she recognized the song.

"Ella Fitzgerald. _Someone to Watch Over Me."_

"Exactly. Good ear, Miss Sparks."

She sang the lyrics in her head. to try to speed up falling asleep.

"_There's a somebody I'm longin' to see. I hope that he turns out to be someone who'll watch over me. I'm a little lamb who's lost in the wood. I know I could, always be good to one who'll watch over me._"

"Doc."

"Hmm?"

"My name is Theodora. Theodora Sparks. That's what I want you to call me."

The violin stopped for a second. Then continued. The Medic replied.

"As you vish."

"_Although he may not be the man some girls think of as handsome, to my heart he carries the key._"

Her eyes finally began to droop, and a warmth radiated throughout her body. _He's helping me. He's helping me fall asleep._ It made her heart swell with affection. Her eyes watered, and she had to close them.

"_Won't you tell him please to put on some speed? Follow my lead, oh, how I need someone to watch over me._"

* * *

When she woke up in the middle of the night out of habit, he was gone.

He'd been taken right from under her nose.

She darted down the halls to Engineer's workshop, hastily pulling on some clothes. She knew that, despite the roommate protocol, he'd likely be in there. And she was right. He was making the final touch ups to her blueprinted design.

He glanced up at her, then looked again when he saw that she was dressed.

And he knew.

"It's time," she said. "Is it working?"

"I ain't had time to test this one, but it shouldn't kill the Doc at least," he reassured. "Take it to where it needs to be, and I'll see if there's any way to-"

"I'll do it," she cut in hastily. "The Plague Doctor will always answer to me. We have a close connection."

"Closer'n anythin' I've ever seen," he laughed. "Do ya think she can do it?"

"I find it funny that you call it a 'she'. And yes: _she'll _be just fine."

They both turned their attention to the hill outside his window. Over that hill, somewhere, was Medic. There were distinct footprints going to and fro from over the sand. He _had _to be somewhere over that hill.

The Doctor would go get him. They both knew he _had _to.


	9. Changing Opinions

His head ached horribly from where the BLU Scout had whacked him with his bat. His leg was twisted strangely, he couldn't even feel it anymore. His throat was swollen and hoarse from screaming for help. The white on his coat was dirty with various colors of brown and red, dirt and blood, mud and rust.

They hadn't taken his chip this time, to his confusion.

They hadn't locked him up, or tied him down.

The Heavy and Demoman of the team were holding him steady while the BLU Soldier stared down at him with unforgiving, relentless eyes.

They were interrogating him.

But he didn't have the answers.

"We know that you know," the BLU continued, fondling the tip of his riding crop. "Someone on RED HAS to know, and if that sucker needs healing, who's he gonna turn to? So, Doc, I'll ask you _one last time_."

The crop smacked his cheek, but Medic could only muster a whimper as the red trickled down his face. The Soldier yanked him up by his shirt. His breath smelled of cigars and whiskey.

"Who _is _the Plague Doctor!?"

"I don't know!"

A hand found his face quickly, and his face stung.

"Who _is HE!?"_

"I don't _know_! _Bitte_, I-"

Two smacks. The doc choked out a sob.

"TELL US!"

"_**PLEASE! STOP!**_"

The BLU Soldier reached for the car battery they had been saving for this, but a gloved hand stopped him.

"He truly does not know." The Spy lit a cigarette, then placed the lit end on the Medic's neck, burning him. He only winced at the contact, too tired to muster any more reaction. "But it does not matter. We will know when _he_ gets here. We'll capture him, peel that stupid mask from his face, and slit his throat so he can bother us _no more_."

As little as he wanted to admit it, the Medic wanted to see that too.

Two weeks ago, he had seen the Doctor on a _courtesy visit_. Well, that's what the masked figure called it.

"You should not be here," the Medic had spat when he walked in on the Doctor feeding his doves. "You're a monster to History, and a bane to zhe Doctor name!"

"Oh. So sorry, dear Doctor," the Plague Doctor had replied cooly. "But, sadly, I'm not here for you. I simply came to say hello to Archimedes, Socrates, Albrecht, Plato, Aristotle- You certainly love ancient history, don't you?"

"Ja. But _your_ history is dark, foolish, arrogant! Doctors like you vere only in it for zhe money! You never did any true healing! You never tried anyzhing outside of zhe books!"

The Plague Doctor walked away from the doves like a spectre, to the RED mercenary.

"**They** were afraid to try anything else. The Dark Ages was a horrible time of little advancement. **They** believed sickness was spread through smell. **They** couldn't have known any better. But **I **am not **them**. I know what they did not. And I assume their form to right their wrongs through aiding you and your fellow men. I am not being paid, I am not being blackmailed, I am not required to do anything. It's simply in my nature to help where I can. To help where _she _is."

"Theodora."

"I've known her since she was a babe," the red figure continued. "She comes from humble background, and her mother was quite the peacemaker between two rival tribes they were stuck in between. But her mother paid the ultimate price for her good deeds. I vowed to protect the rest of that family and bring an end to the tribes' bickering. And I did. But I was not satisfied."

"Are you ever?"

"Until I know she is safe and her life and those around her are secure, then no."

"You must love her dearly," the Medic spoke quietly. His angry glare had died down.

"As if she were my sister," the Doctor replied.

A moment of silence. A moment too long, and the Medic regained his composure.

"Vell, it is of no concern of _mein_. Do vhat you vill to protect her, but leave me out of it. I vant nozhing to do vith your kind."

Another moment of silence, much shorter, but much quieter. The the Doctor bowed.

"As you wish, Medic."

At the window, though, the robed figure stopped again, glancing down.

"But this does not mean that I will cease to protect you. She speaks highly of you to me, regardless of your relation with the Heavy Weapons Specialist."

A beaker fell to the floor and shattered as the doctor stumbled back. "Vh-vhat? H-how did you-?"

"I notice things. It is required to find the safest ways to protect people and find what is best for them. I apologize if you feel violated, but as a doctor yourself, you should know the importance of this."

And then the Plague Doctor was gone, and the Medic hated it even more than before. A spying bastard, that's what the Doctor was. Getting into _my _personal life like he's _mein bruder_. Bah!

The present slammed back into him along with the Spy's boot, and he choked up blood.

"Take 'im to the cell block," Sniper said. "Oi'm goin' back to me van."

The Medic was dragged by the Heavy and Demoman down unfamiliar halls in poor condition, and that's when he realized: he wasn't anywhere _near _**either **of the bases.

A small moan left him, along with the last flicker of hope that he would be saved.

He was thrown into the cell with careless hands, and his leg twisted horribly again, eliciting a sharp cry. Then the door was slammed and locked, and he was left alone in the dark of the room. If he believed in a god, he'd be begging them to take him away from here right now, right this very instant, save him.

But in a world like this, there couldn't possibly be a god of any sort. It was hopeless. He dragged his knees up to his chest and sobbed. He didn't care if anyone heard or saw. He sobbed like a baby. The pain aided in dragging out the tears, in breaking his heart and soul.

If anyone could save him, it was the Doctor.

But would he? After all he had said to him, would he?

* * *

The buzzing of the "PD" intercom woke her from her fitful slumber at her desk, and she was quick to answer.

"Yes, yes," she yawned. "I'm here."

"I apologize for the rude awakening, but we have business at hand. The Medic has been taken again, or so Miss Sparks has told me. Have you gotten any intel on the makeshift base?"

"Only a little," Miss Pauling replied. "It's pretty far up north, up in the mountains. You should be able to get there in three hours walking, but-"

"I've got my own ride," the Doctor told her. "Just keep me up to date on happenings back on the home front, and I should be fine."

"Right then."

The transmission switched off, and the Doctor turned back to Engineer, who was hauling up the final design of Sparky's machine.

"Will it work?" the Doctor asked.

"Should," Engie panted. "Make two trips _maybe_, one definitely. If that qualifies as 'working' to you."

"It will be enough. Start it up. I'm going north. I should not be longer than two hours. If I don't come back due to complications, wait for Medic over the horizon. He _will _come back. I swear on my life."

* * *

It was the sound of footsteps outside the door that caught his attention. Someone other than a BLU. They had a definite sound to their gait. This was different. A soft voice commanded the Medic.

"Step away from the door. Unless you want pieces of the wall in your face."

Someone was breaking him out!? He scrambled from the wall as best as he could and covered himself with his arms, and the explosion made him deaf for a second, and then there was the gloved hand offering to help him to his feet, and he saw the Plague Doctor. Despite his predicament, he folded his arms.

"You again."

"Who did you expect?"

"You. I just didn't _vant_ it to be you."

"I know. But I'm here, so accept it."

And the Medic took the Doctor's hand.

And the alarms blared.

"The entire team will be after us, I assume," the Doctor said.

And the Medic replied, "I suppose so, it seems inevitable. I am in no condition to fight, I'm afraid."

And the Doctor said, "Stay close to me."

And the Soldier, Scout and Pyro came around the corner. The Plague Doctor took its staff and prepared to battle them.

"This does not seem fair, gentlemen," the Doctor said.

The red started by jumping over the Soldier and Scout and slapping the flamethrower out of the Pyro's hands, then kneeing him in the face and smacking him down with the rod. The Scout whammed the Doctor in the back, but it hardly seemed to notice, yanking the bat out of his grip, kicking him away and then planting the small end right into his eye. His scream was that of pure torture.

At this point, the Pyro had gotten back up, and Soldier was itching to have his turn at the thing. The Medic watched on with eager eyes, not sure as to who he wanted to win.

The Soldier attempted to sweep out the Doctor's legs from beneath it, but it jump kicked the man in the face. The Pyro grabbed the fabric of the thing and yanked it back faster than you could say, "dominated". He was about to step on that stupid beak, but the Doctor rolled away and pulled out the suited man's leg. His head hit hard enough that he blacked out.

The Soldier hit the Doctor in the face, cracking the beak and dragging a grunt from the figure. But the Doctor was not one to be taken down so easily. Grabbing the American's neck, the Doctor knelt down quickly, flipping the man over and landing him flat on his back. Then the boot was brought down on his face- hard. The crack was satisfactory to both the red figures.

"Come on," the Plague Doctor commanded the Medic. "The others will be here soon. We have no time to argue."

"You took on three men stronger zhan you wizhout a sweat." The Medic was awed as he limped quickly to keep up pace.

"It is not always about strength, Medic. Speed can determine a victor any day."

And then the Spy was there, butterfly knife in hand, and he dug it into the Doctor's shoulder. Because of the robotic voice used to disguise the thing's identity, only static made it through the speaker in the beak. The Medic yanked a needle from its belt and pressed the contents into the Spy's arm. The effect was instantaneous; he crumpled to the floor and his skin began to shrivel, and he screamed for mercy and death all at the same time.

The Doctor held its shoulder firmly. "You're lucky that wasn't a liquified übercharge, doctor."

"I helped, and zhat's all zhat matters," he countered.

"I don't need your help, I'm sorry to tell you. I have this all under control."

"If you had it under control, I vouldn't be here!" the Medic hissed.

"We don't have time to argue. Come."

* * *

They made it out of the base after an encounter with the Demoman and outwitting the Heavy with a quick chase, and the Medic saw the Plague Doctor's glider. The design Sparky had had Engineer bring to life.

There was a small but powerful propeller in the back, controlled by a switch in front. There was a slot for the boots, a bar to hang on to, and ties that went to the waist that felt the movement of the body and adjusted the glider accordingly. A simple design, but effective. The pattern on the fabric was a dove with syringes in one claw and a scythe in the other. Like a symbol of a Doctor of Death itself.

And it was right next to a cliff.

"I apologize if you have Batophobia, doctor," the Doctor said, "but there is really no other way out of here quickly. I will get in, then you will climb onto my back, and I'll fly us both out of here."

"You're joking!" he exclaimed. "You _must _be! Zhis vill not handle us both!"

"I've made sure it will. It will support, at the maximum, 500 pounds. It will carry."

The Doctor strapped itself in, then there was the sound of angry shouting and commanding from the BLUs. The BLU Medic was definitely in that party.

"Hurry and get on. We have no more time."

For once, the Medic complied immediately with the Doctor's commands.

"Turn it on!" he exclaimed. "Get us out of here!"

The Doctor was quick to comply. The fan spun to life, and with an encouraging push from the feet, the glider was off of the cliff- and plummeting to the ground a few hundred feet below.

Neither of them screamed, or panicked. The momentum was required, and when they were fifty feet from the ground, the Doctor pulled up sharply. The Medic almost lost his grip on the figure, but he held on tightly, and soon, he knew, they'd be dead.

But the sound of a crash did not greet him, only the gentle breeze of moving through the air, and the distant sound of gunfire. He dared to crack open one eye (which he hadn't realized he'd closed) and he was flying.

_He was __**flying!**_

He glanced behind him and saw the angry figures of the BLUs waving erratically and pointing bitterly, and the sight made him grin wickedly. Not today, you _ficker._

And he remembered who had saved him- again. And was immediately ashamed. Before he could think to apologize to the Plague Doctor, something cold and wet brushed past his nose, and he realized he was in the clouds. Yes, he'd been in a plane, but _this. __**This**_.

Absolutely nothing could compare, and the fear of death and the horrors the BLUs had inflicted on him vanished.

"Zhis is _Vunderbar!_" he exclaimed. "Hahahah! Faster, _bitte_!"

"Now now, doctor, you're acting like a child," the Plague Doctor teasingly scorned.

"Oh, shut up. I vas going to apologize for mein behavior earlier, but now I vunder if you deserve it after zhat comment."

The Plague Doctor _laughed_. The sound was strange, with the mask and the voice changing device, but it was laughter all the same.

"No apologies are necessary. I know how you truly feel about me, Medic."

He scoffed, and realized their flight was coming to an end all too soon, as he could see the rooftops of Teufort in the distance.

"And how _do _I feel about you, Doctor?"

"Not as strongly as you do for Heavy, but I sense the admiration in your voice on the rare occasion."

The Medic's throat went dry. "So you know about mein Heavy, and yet you treat me zhe same. Vhy?"

There was no reply for a second, until the rooftops of the RED and BLU bases could be seen in detail, and Engineer on the RED roof. "I feel that love should not be based on one's gender. Love is a free sport, and someone will always get hurt. But to scorn two men or women for loving each other as they would a member of the opposite sex adds only more trauma to an already indescribable problem. So I neither support it, nor am I against it, but with God as my witness, I will fight to the end to protect what _you_ feel is right and true in your heart."

The Medic was humbled. The glider touched down on the roof, which was just barely big enough as a landing strip. Engie caught it when it was about to go over, and pulled them back up.

"Have a nice flight?" he asked.

"Ja, I did." His spectacles had slid down his nose, and now he pushed them back up with a trembling finger. "Ja. It vas… Ja."

"Well, hurry an' get down to the Infirmary an' patch yourself up. You ain't lookin' so well, doc." The Medic complied without hesitation, limping down the stairs, asking for no one's help. When Engie turned around to talk to the Plague Doctor, the thing was gone. It took him a moment to think about why he/she would leave so soon, and then he remembered.

"Exit stage left, re-enter stage right as Character 2. Right."


	10. Haunted

Pauling came by with some good news. The BLUs had another two months for their dumb, dangerous shenanigans, and then they were done. Redmond and Blutarch had finally come to an agreement on the contract and had altered it. More was allowed during the fighting, such as taking captives _during _battles and releasing them right after. Removing chips was banned, or else your contract was immediately terminated, and you would get none of the promised pay. Oh, and torturing was to be kept to a minimum, and no dicks were to be cut off, to the Spy's relief. That hadn't been pleasant at all.

"As soon as it's all worked out and implemented, the Plague Doctor will no longer be welcome here, I'm afraid. That was part of the compromise," she said regretfully. "There's nothing I can do about it, and if you see him past the two months, you are ordered to shoot on sight. We aren't worried about him spilling secrets right now, but if he sticks around, that will raise suspicions and require immediate action."

"Nah, that thing's too bloody flexible to be a man," Demo retorted. "It's got tae be a woman!"

Scout agreed. "Yeah! I once saw that _chick _take a hit to the crotch, and she didn't stop or anythin'! Just kept right on plowing through those fuckin' BLUs like it was nothin'!"

"It just the form that confuses me," Engie added. "Pretty sure it's a lady, but if she is, she's awful tall and strong."

Pauling tapped her clipboard with agitated fingers. "We aren't here to discuss the gender of the Plague Doctor, we're here to discuss the implementations that will set things right again."

Sparky stepped forward quickly.

"And _killing _the Plague Doctor will 'set things right', Miss Pauling? They've protected me my whole life! I can't sit by and watch them die if they choose to stick around!"

There were murmurs and a few shouts of approval. But the Medic had other thoughts.

"Who cares? I haff talked to **him **plenty of times, and **he **is a very selfless man. It is his choice for him to stay here and meet his end or not. But I zhink he vill get zhe message, and move on, and vait for you to leave here," he concluded to Theodora. "I vould not worry too greatly if I vere you."

"The Plague Doctor has saved you _plenty _of times, Doc. I'd think you'd be a _little more grateful_," Sparky hissed. "Hell, they even got your doves back for you from the Animal Shelter just _last week!_ You're acting like they've done _nothing _to deserve your support and respect!"

"Vell, he _hasn't_. All he's done is protect us a few times from some torture zhat ve could easily handle, and if not, Respawn vould have taken care of us."

"What about the time they took your chip?"

"Zhey veren't going to _kill_ me, I knew zhat. If anyzhing, zhe Plague Doctor has made zhings worse by _encouraging _the BLUs to kidnap us as a sort of challenge!"

No one had thought of that, and the idea sobered them all. Had the Plague Doctor really made things worse?

No. It wasn't possible.

Miss Pauling readjusted her glasses and hummed, "Well, if you aren't going to let me finish, just know that we're transferring bases today and that by the time we come back here, everything will have fixed itself. Pack your bags, men, we're going to Coldfront."

A collection of groans and panicked voices assaulted her ears at the news.

"Pauling, it's getting cold enough as it is here, but SERIOUSLY!? **COLDFRONT!?** You're nuts!" Scout complained.

"No, your employer is insane. Plus, the citizens need a break due to the recent outbreak of zoo animals thanks to a _certain Soldier_."

The man had his finger in his nose and was at the back of the gathered mercs, completely unaware of what was going on. "YESSIR, I FREED THOSE FELLOW AMERICANS FROM THEIR CONFINES AS PRISONERS OF WAR TO THOSE DAMN NAZI BASTARDS. NO THANKS IS NECESSARY, BUT A MEDAL WOULD BE MUCH APPRECIATED!"

More groans and sighs. Pauling just clapped her hands.

"You all have a day to take what you will want or need, then you'll need to carpool up there in Sniper's van and Medic's ambulance. Sparks, Doc, come here please."

While the rest of the mercs dispersed, the two called remained where they stood, rooted to the spot, afraid of what she'd say. The last time she'd addressed just the two of them, it had gone badly.

"I know you're not going to like this, but you need to pack within the next ten minutes and meet me back out here. For the BLU team, I'd sent the Spy and Medic to clean up their base to make it suitable. I'm sending you two for your team. You'll be supplied with a car to get you there, and when you're done there, you'll be the first back here as a sort of reward; an entire two days without the others to pester you."

Sparky crossed her arms. "We've learned to tolerate each other. We'll be fine."

"Good, that makes you no different than any of the others. Go, meet me back here in ten."

* * *

All she needed was some spare clothes, and she took a blanket too, just in case. She heard Coldfront could get… well, _cold_. Medic packed lightly as well, and brought his three favorite doves with him. "Zhe rest vill come in zhe ambulance," he said. "Zhey ah trained to get inside, and zhe ozher REDs know zhis."

They met outside the gates to the RED base and waited patiently for Miss Pauling to come back with the car. Both shifted awkwardly, uncertain of what to say. Medic spoke first.

"I didn't mean it, you know."

"Didn't mean what?" she asked.

"Zhat Doctor has been a huge help. I vas using a sort of psychology to get zhe ozher mercs to relent his loss a little less. Zhat's all zhey talk about anymore vhenever you aren't around."

"Really?"

"Really. Zhey ah afraid of offending you vith some of zhe zhings zhey say."

"Like?" she pried.

"Vell, let's just say zhat **she **is Scout's newest crush, and zhe Demoman has made far less jokes about haffing sex vith my wife."

"You have a wife?"

"_Nein, _he just knows zhat zhe idea highly offends me. I do not take lightly to haffing affairs."

"Oh. Well, if you did have a wife, what would she look like? Your dream wife, I mean?"

The German glanced down at her. "Vhat a curious question. Vell, I vill humor you. My 'dream' wife has long, blonde hair, sparkling blue eyes, and a laugh zhat sounds like pure, melted gold. Her breast size is not too large, her vaist is reasonably small, and she can defend herself if she needs to… kind of… kind of like you, I guess."

"But I thought you-" She stopped herself, biting on her knuckle. Medic stared.

"Thought vhat, Miss Sparks?"

_Thought you were gay_, she wanted to admit. _Thought you liked to take Heavy deep in your ass and let him fuck you into whatever surface you're on until you can't think past the fire in your gut. Like something I would want you to do to me._

Oh, wait, she'd never admit that last part. Ever.

"Nothing, really," she told him.

And then he remembered that she had found his… his _toys_.

"I like zhem both, you know."

"Who?"

"Men _and _women. Surprisingly, mostly women, if you vill believe it. I… I von't go into detail. Now, vho is _your _dream partner?"

"I don't have one."

"I don't believe you, _mein hübsche kleine Dämon._"

An exasperated sound rumbled deep in her throat. "What does that even mean!?"

He chuckled, low and drawn out. "I dubbed you vith zhis name vhen I first met you, if you recall. It means, 'my _pretty little demon_.'

"How fitting," she whispered. Then the car pulled up that would be theirs on the long drive to Coldfront, food and such in the trunk.

* * *

The ride was quiet, smooth. There were special roads only open to the mercs, so they could travel whatever speed they wanted. Medic was going well over a hundred, and it was thrilling and frightening all at the same time.

"It's not zhat bad," he told Sparky. "Zhe last time zhe Plague Doctor saved me, ve _flew _back to zhe base."

"I know," she said. "I designed that glider."

The car wobbled a bit in his surprise, but neither of them were panicked. "You ah much closer to him zhan I initially imagined. Vell, he told me he'd known you since you vere a babe, and zhat he swore to protect your family after you mozher passed. How did she die, may I ask?"

The air was suddenly hotter, and Theodora turned away, rolling down the window.

She didn't want to talk about it, and Medic sensed it, so he turned his gaze back to the road and said nothing more. To drown the silence, he turned on the radio.

"_Those were the days my friend_

_We thought they'd never end_

_We'd sing and dance forever and a day_

_We'd live the life we choose_

_We'd fight and never lose_

_For we were young and sure to have our way._"

By this point, they'd entered a grove of trees, signifying that they were close to Coldfront, which was located in northern Wyoming. The weather was definitely cooling.

"_Then the busy years went rushing by us_

_We lost our starry notions on the way_

_If by chance I'd see you in the tavern_

_We'd smile at one another and we'd say…_"

"It was an accident."

"Vhat?" he asked.

"It was never meant to happen like that. The way she died."

* * *

_I remembered it was a sunny, warm day. But the location is forever lost to me. I was only a small child, my memory was not yet fully developed._

_There were two tribes between which our home lay: the Simihe tribe and the Poroquette people. They were bitter towards one another, arguing about which the gods loved more. They aimed to please their gods with the bloodshed of the others, and that included any settlers that happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time._

_We were in that group. My father said we should just try to stay out of their way, fight them off if necessary. But my mother was always the peacemaker. That's how they met, after all. She saved him from a fight he was going to lose._

_She wanted to help the natives come to terms with each others beliefs. She acted as a sort of neutral messenger between them, and they accepted her. She even took me to meet them both. They were such a humble, flexible people, I couldn't help but be awed whenever I saw them. I didn't understand why such noble people had to fight._

_Things seemed to be going well, for a while. But my father still had a fleeting suspicion that something was going to go horribly wrong._

_It did. On that sunny, warm day, two members of the Poroquette and one of the Simihe were arguing. She hadn't taught me their language, so I didn't know what they were fighting about. She came between them to keep them from hurting each other, at the unintentional cost of her own life. I never knew who it was who stabbed her, so I never pointed fingers. Well, I didn't do much of anything after that._

_But soon, the natives began to spread the word that my mother's vengeful spirit was lurking about, slaying anyone who went too far out of line to provoke war between the tribes. I knew that couldn't be true, my mother would never have wished death upon anyone. Sometimes, in my sleep, I would feel a gloved hand caress my head, and in the morning, the blood of those that the 'spectre' had slain would coat my hair and cheek._

_It wasn't my father, I knew that. I would awake when the thing had only barely left, and ran to him. But he was fast asleep, no sign of blood anywhere on him. No blood in the washbasin. No blood on his gloves._

_It left me a note, one night. It told me not to fear, that everything would sort itself out. That I should lay low._

_No, I went to the tribes. I asked questions, asked the witnesses what this thing looked like. I had a friend of mine in the tribes translate for me. Both confessed to seeing the same figure, slitting the throats of the natives. I was angry. That night, I left a note by my bed that I knew this thing would see. It was gone in the morning, and replaced by another:_

"Only when they make peace will I sucumb to your command."

_I told them that the spectre had come to me in a dream, saying that it was not my mother's spirit, but that of _her _mother, and that the only way to stop the slayings would be to end the constant bickering and fighting._

_No more blood was shed after that day. But it had taken two years. Two years too long, and my mother paid for trying to get them to see that no one had the better god, all humans were treated the same regardless of what they believed in. Some were lucky, some were not._

_And they finally accepted it._

_My father and I moved shortly after that, and the spectre followed me, and ended the suffering there too. I realized that this ghost was always going to follow me. Always going to resort to violence to get the job done, and as much as I hated it for that, I also appreciated the thought._

_It's not my friend, but I will do for it what it has done for me until I am too weak to even speak._

* * *

The car pulled in to Coldfront, into the garage provided solely for that purpose, crunching the new fallen snow beneath it. The sky was dark. It was midnight.

The Medic took the key, and stared at Theodora, setting it on the rearview mirror as he did. Her eyes were tired and full of weary memories.

"I had no idea…" he apologized. "I couldn't imagine zhe hell you must haff gone zhrough vizhout her. It must haff been difficult."

"I made it by," she replied. "Lots of little girls have had to grow up without their mommies. I was lucky I even got any time with her."

"At least you look on zhe bright side, I suppose."

They exited the car as a light snow began to cover their tire tracks, and along with his doves, walked to the base. They were shivering immediately.

"I'll start a fire and cook somezhing as soon as ve get inside, you prepare zhe Infirmary here for us to sleep. Ve vill clean in zhe morning."

Theodora nodded tiredly, then they went their seperate ways to do the different tasks. As much as they wanted to sleep, tonight would be a long one with so much still left to do.


	11. Innocence

_I have received a request for sexy times. MedicxSparky sexy times. So glad to see my readers and I think alike!_

_Don't worry, sexy times are coming, but not yet. Just bear with me for a few more chapters. I don't typically just dive into sex without a reason or chemistry between two characters. If you know of my other story I'm currently working on, _My Sinatra, _the sexy times in that are coming sooner probably, so go check that one out too._

_-Dylawa_

* * *

They stayed in front of the fire long into the next day. It was almost too cold to do anything else but curl up in a ball and try to retain all the body heat you could with the poorly insulated base.

The Medic didn't panic when he woke up realizing that he was cuddling her. He just slowly pried himself away before she could wake up. That wouldn't go down well. The night had been spent laughing and telling stories to try to ward away the cold and Theodora's past. So it was no wonder they'd slept so soundly.

He threw some bread into the toaster in the kitchen and poured two glasses of water, then went to change out of his sleepwear and into his regular medicinal clothes. Archimedes and Socrates cooed softly and huddled together. Medic smiled at them.

"_Dumme Vögel._" he said."_Warum gehst du nicht spielen oder so etwas gehen?_"

The doves just hummed back at him with the same tone and flew over to where Theodora was sleeping. One started pecking at her face and the other nestled in to her neck. It spurred her to wake up, and it was with dazed eyes that she looked around and remembered the night's events.

"Oh," was all she muttered before her head slumped back to the floor. Medic chuckled.

"_Guten Morgen, kleine Mädchen. _I assume you slept vell?"

"Surprisingly… yes. I was… warm."

"Zhe fire burned all night, Teddy. Of course you vhere varm." The toast popped, and he excused himself to go and butter it.

Theodora sat up and stretched, then realized what the doctor had said.

"Did you just call me 'Teddy'?" she asked him. The German froze in his actions, but only for a second.

"I did. You told me I could call you zhat vhile ve vere talking last night. Haff you already forgotten?"

It was true, she had forgotten, but she played it off like she hadn't. He called her to the table, and they began to eat.

The Medic went over the to do list to get the base cleaned up for the rest of the team, pointing out which areas and jobs they would each cover to get the work done the most efficiently. It all seemed logical enough, and simple as well. The job didn't need to be done fantastically; they were all rowdy, sweaty men, after all. After breakfast was eaten, they parted ways to get the cleaning done.

* * *

"Teddy?" he called worriedly. He couldn't find her anywhere. She wasn't in her designated cleaning areas, thought they _were _clean already. It was dangerous to get separated from the rest of the base in Coldfront. Blizzards were common, and crippling. To fall victim to one could be fatal. That had happened to one of the first generation Spies in the Gravel wars.

"Theodora!" Medic tried again, but the only response was his own echo crying right back at him. And a soft, but definite "mew?".

The RED blinked. Had he really heard that? It couldn't be. There weren't any animals for miles around this time of year.

"Mew?"

"Shhh! Medic will hear you!"

That was definitely Teddy. Medic followed the sound of mewing, content purring, and Sparky's constant shushes to keep the thing quiet. He ended up in front of the doors to the Infirmary, and was immediately worried. What of his doves? Were they hurt? Was Theodora cleaning up a "mess"?

He gave no warning as he stepped inside, and gasped at the sight that greeted him. Teddy gasped as well.

In the breast of her turtle neck sweater was a small, grey and cream Persian tabby. She was holding up a bottle of warm milk for the small creature, and Medic's three doves that he had brought were sitting on her as well, gazing at the kitten with genuine curiosity.

A minute of silence passed as each of them processed the situation and tried to figure out what to say. Medic found his voice first.

"Vhere did you find it?"

"Under the window. It was slightly open. I… I found the mother's body not far away. Froze before it was eaten, by the looks of it."

She was badly shaken by the sight of the corpse, he could tell. With measured movements, he took the kitten from her, along with the bottle. As soon as the thing was removed, it started to shiver.

"Female," he muttered as he began his assessment, "slightly malnourished, I think zhis paw is broken… but I zhink you fed her just in time. She vas on zhe verge of starvation and Hypothermia."

"You won't make me send her back out," Sparky asked. "She won't survive."

"I know. She may stay vith you, but I will only supply her vith veterinary care, nozhing else."

She threw her arms around him and squealed happily. Medic blushed.

"Her name is Dorothy! Her name is Dorothy, and she's going to cuddle with me every night and-" Realizing her childness, she cleared her throat and said, "Thank you."

"Ja, ja," Medic waved dismissively. "But not in here, alright? Put her in zhe bedroom. I'll find some saucers for food und vater." As she stood up to take Dorothy to their shared room, he added, "I vas vorried, Teddy."

She stopped. "About what?"

"I… I zhought zhat you'd been taken by zhe BLU Medic and Spy."

Her eyebrows raised. "I didn't… think you cared about what happens to me."

"It's my job to vorry about _mein kamerads._" Medic stuttered with his next sentence. "Especially vhen you ah zhe only female of zhe team- I- I know you vish to be treated zhe same, b-but you need _some _special treatment- er, ah…"

"I get, it, Doc," she chuckled. "I'll be fine. I can look out for myself, just like any other guy here. Don't worry about those BLUs and me. Come on, Dorothy…"

As Teddy excused herself, Medic realized a major flaw in all that had happened over the past few months. Nearly every member of the RED team had been abducted by the BLUs at some point in time.

Sparky had not. Not once.

He was baffled, and angry at the same time, but didn't know which feeling to act on.

* * *

They'd gotten a call from Heavy at a tollbooth in southern Utah, saying that they should arrive early next morning. Medic relayed the message to Teddy, and she just nodded, too busy watching her new friend sleep.

She looked much more beautiful when she was smiling, Medic decided. She was always frowning, always had a slight crease in her brow that portrayed power. But with the kitten- and with him, occasionally- she relaxed. She smiled.

Dinner was simple; sandwiches and wine, which was all that was on hand. They started the fire again and played with Dorothy until the small kitten tired out and fell asleep under a coffee table.

Theodora was a completely different person at night. She was quiet, thoughtful, and content. She opened up far more easily and was a wonderful person to be around. Her positivity was infectious, and Medic even found himself affected. They each would even go as far to say that they were friends at this point.

Teddy was more than okay with that.

"Who is zhe special person in your life, _frauline?_" he found himself asking at one point. A bit too much wine could do that to a person.

"Uh…" she paused, staring into the fireplace. "I don't have anyone. Just me." She'd had too much to drink as well.

Medic snorted. "I don't believe zhat for a second. You-you're far too beautiful to be alone for your age."

"Everyone wants to, ya know, _protect _me, and I don't need that silly business," she retorted. "I need someone who'll treat me like a _man_. A man who can, hold a gun and shoot it at the bad guys. And not miss. Th-that's me. Don't need any of this, 'I'll carry you through the door' nonsense. That's bullshit." She held out her glass for some more wine, but Medic held it back.

"I zhink ve've both had enough, Teddy."

"Ah, come on, Doc, one more shot, I can take it."

"You don't take 'shots' of vine, _dummkopf_. N-_Nein, _no more."

"I know what I'm doin', gimme the wine." She reached over him to grab the bottle, which rewarded him with a pleasant view into her shirt. He pushed her back by her breasts and giggled.

"I saw your _cclleeeeeaaaaavvaaaaagggggeeee,_" he taunted. "I saw it!"

"Don't touch my boobies!" she hissed. "They hurt! Always got 'em all up close an' personal in my shirt, Doc."

Medic cocked his head to one side. "Vhat do you mean?"

Teddy rolled her eyes. which, in her drunk state, included rolling her entire head as well. "DUH. I-I wrap 'em up so they don't _jiggle_. DUH. B-because that'd be bad, ya know? It'd be bad to know my-my secret."

Now he was interested.

"Vhat secret, Miss Sparks?" he inquired.

She opened her mouth to speak, but no sound came out as she realized what she was falling into. "It wouldn't be a secret if I told you, now, would it?"

"Go on, tell me," he insisted. "I von't tell."

"No way, Jose."

Medic was far too drunk to deal with this, so he leaned back in his spot and sighed.

"Vhatever, lady."

He closed his eyes, ready to drift off, until he heard sobbing. _Sobbing? But why..?_

Teddy had thrown off her turtleneck sweater and was now kicking off her pants. Medic just stared, confused and buzzed.

"Why you no want me?!" she wailed. "Why you no want me, you _fucking _German?! Am I not good enough!? HUH!?" Large tears rolled down her face and streaked her cheeks. The wet glimmered in the firelight.

"Vha… I-I don't-"

"Am I not sexy?! Are my thighs too fat!? HUH!?" Her pants now finally off, Sparky whimpered as she crawled over to Medic, who was finally processing what to do about this.

"It's fucking HEAVY, isn't it!?" she groaned. "You're fucking him, huh?! Like his fat cock in your ass!? I- I didn't even get a Prom date- all the boys were scared of me! You fucking gay! You-you have good taste, but WHY NOT ME!?"

It took only a good smack across the face for the woman to come to her senses, which meant shutting up and curling up on the floor. Medic stumbled to his feet, frightened by everything that he'd just heard.

"How do you know about me and Heavy!?" he screamed and pointed. "HOW!? Is it **zhat** fucking obvious!? WHO ELSE KNOWS!?"

He trembled as he tried to put the puzzle together in his head, but the stress and alcohol did him no favors in the task. Theodora _wanted _him. She was jealous of Heavy. But how did she even know in the first place!?

"STAY AVAY FROHM ME!" the German finally settled with, then ran down the corridors of the empty base back to his own room. Away from her. Away from this nightmare.

When she heard the door slam echo through the cold base, Sparky grinned through the tears in her eyes. Her task had been accomplished. And though she hated the method she had to use, it was for the best. For both of them. For Medic especially.

* * *

The rest of the team arrived early next morning. Scout was the first to find the empty wine bottle and Sparky sprawled out on the floor in nothing but her underwear. So instead of doing the reasonable thing and covering her up and getting her water, he called the rest of the team in to stare.

Engineer reprimanded him as soon as he laid eyes on the sight and shooed everyone away except for Spy, who was the only one who had sense enough not to gape and laugh. They carried the girl to the Infirmary, where they found another glorious sight- Medic had drunk himself to sleep as well, and was face first in his paperwork and his vomit. The Texan and Frenchman exchanged looks.

"What do ya think happened?" Engie asked timidly.

Spy took out a cigarette and lit it, using the opportunity of Medic being asleep to smoke in peace. "Miss Sparks has fallen for our dear Docteur, I'm afraid. Probably confessed it to him and he turned her down. She drinks. She can't handle it and loses consciousness. As for the Medic's reason to induce so much alcohol is beyond me, I'm afraid."

They laid her on the operating table and went to shake the Medic awake so he could take care of Sparky's inevitable hangover.

But Spy knew the _whole _truth. It was simple deduction of reason. He knew Medic and Heavy had a thing. He knew that Heavy was the reason he turned down Miss Sparks. But why would he be upset? Why would it matter to him? Unless…

"_Mon dieu,_" he chuckled. "_Oh, quel enchevêtrement nous tissons lorsque nous pratiquons premier à tromper!_"

* * *

_Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive!_


	12. Hope

There was absolute silence as Medic treated Theodora for her pounding head and still unsteady feet. Not even the rest of the doves that had joined the Infirmary made a sound. Neither of them said a word to each other.

As he was cleaning his table of his own mess, Theodora stared into the Medigun with hazy eyes. _I really did it,_ she thought to herself. _I pushed him away. I made him hate me. _And though she wasn't proud for it, she knew that it was for the better. She couldn't afford to be in a relationship with anyone. Especially when the job could end so _quickly _if one little thing went wrong.

Besides. He had Heavy. They were just a few countries apart. She and him… an entire hemisphere. Two masses of land and an ocean.

It could never work.

Teddy briskly wiped the tears from her eyes when she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. Medic was coming. He stood above her with a cold, calculating gaze as he switched off the red fumes that were healing her. Then, he leaned over her, close enough that she could smell his aftershave.

"I vill not allow you to leave zhis room until you tell me how you are aware of my situation with Misha," he hissed. "And when you promise me you vill not say a vord about it to _anyone_, or I swear to _GOTT, _I'll _werde reißen Sie mit nichts als meinen bloßen Händen und bloßer Kraft Glied für Glied, und während Sie schluchzen und zu versuchen, holen die wenig von dem, was von deinen armen, hässlichen Körper verlassen, werde ich durch jede und jeden Knochen sahen und reißen Sie die Augen aus den Höhlen und Kraft zu ernähren sie dir, du verdammte Schlampe!_"

She didn't know much German. But she picked up on getting torn apart, having her eyes force fed to her, and being a fucking bitch.

"His name is Misha?" she asked quietly.

"Yes!" Medic exclaimed. "Now _tell me! _How did you find out!?"

"I- I have my ways."

"I vant _specifics_! Did you _see _us? Does somevone else know!?"

"I'm not telling you. But it doesn't matter, I don't _care_. Do what you want, you fuck!"

Medic threw his hands up in the air and yelled, "You're _useless! _I- I can't believe I _trusted _you! Argh!"

"Are we done here!?" Teddy yelled back, jumping off the table. "I don't need this bullshit, Doc! I'm not gonna tell you how I know, alright? But I'm not gonna tell anyone! I swear on all my secrets that you so _desperately _want to know!"

"Zhat's not good enough!"

"Fucking DEAL with it! I can't believe I fell in _love _with you!"

Medic opened his mouth to scream back before he realized what she had said. Sparky's expression quickly contorted into fear and shock at her own words. From the corner of the room, Dorothy started crying for her "mama".

He stared for a long time, trying to piece together something logical to reply with. But he was too slow. Theodora turned away just as he was going to reply, slowly walking to her kitten to comfort it.

"Forget it, you wouldn't understand. I'll forget this ever happened if you do too." She took the ball of fluff in her arms and briskly walked out of the room. Medic grabbed her by her shoulder, but she swatted him away and shrieked, "DON'T TOUCH ME! WHAT MORE DO YOU FUCKING WANT!?"

The German trembled, his face pale.

"You… _loved_… me?"

The Canadian stared for a moment. He saw the agony in her eyes. But it was soon gone, along with their owner. The door slammed in his face, though it was a yard away. Medic stared.

_Oh Gott. Oh Gott, no. No…_

* * *

Scout, Heavy and Sniper took an immediate shine to Dorothy as soon as they laid eyes on her. The giant was unusually gentle as he cradled the small cat in just his hand, and the other two played with her in the meantime. Spy just grinned at the sight, then left the room so he could smoke without hurting the small thing's lungs. Pyro, Soldier, Sparky and Engineer were elsewhere. Demoman had gone to town to get some beer for the gang. It was an unusually peaceful day, which the entire team was grateful for.

Medic slumped into the room quietly, inconspicuously, trying to draw as little attention to himself as he could with his pale face and shaking hands. Heavy and the others were around the fireplace with the kitten. Medic cursed under his breath.

"Ah, Heavy?" he called across the room in an unusually timid voice, "I require your assistance in zhe infirmary, _bitte_."

The giant rose to his feet and lumbered behind Medic to their destination, uncertain why his Doktor was so uneasy. As soon as the infirmary door was shut, Medic broke down. He yanked Heavy down and sloppily kissed him, uncaring of the tears falling from his eyes. Heavy just embraced him lovingly, waiting for him to calm down and tell him what was wrong.

As soon as Medic had the mettle to speak, he blurted out, "I don't want to leave you ever, _mein kuschelbar. _I just… I just can't."

The Russian knew this day would come. He knew his Doktor would find someone else and be conflicted between them and him. He wasn't worried, or upset. Especially if the other was a girl. God knows Doktor needs a woman in his life. Heavy pulled the German into his lap and shushed him as he petted his hair like some little porcelain doll.

"Doktor, you know we cannot work outside of job. We barely work here. Is hard enough to hide from seven others and _боссы. _How can we hide from whole world? You know what I want you to do."

"I don't- don't vant to. Heavy, I-"

"Doktor." he warned. "We cannot keep playing. Plague Doktor knows, da? You told me he knows."

Medic jumped. "Zhat bastard must haff told Theodora! She knows as vell!"

Now Heavy was concerned. "And what does she say?"

The previous night's memories flooded back into him like a poison. How she'd stripped to attempt to look more attractive (which, in his drunk state, had had _some _effect). How she'd tried to anger him with the knowledge of their arrangement.

Medic choked down his frustration and wiped away a few more tears. "She… She is jealous. I don't zhink she really cares, but she's jealous."

"Jealous? Of which of us?"

"Of you, Misha. She is jealous of you. Ve both got a bit drunk last night and she got upset over… somezhing. I… can't recall."

"She is jealous of me," he repeated quietly. "So she wants you."

Medic nodded, and Heavy nodded with him.

"Do you love her?"

Medic reeled back from Heavy's grasp and exclaimed, "No! She- she- I could _never_- N-_Nein! _No! I…" his face had gotten quite red, which he tried to hide by burrowing himself in Heavy's embrace. There was a moment of silence before Heavy chuckled.

"You got in fight with leetle Sparky."

"I did _not_."

"You got in fight, and now too proud to admit you love her back." He'd gotten in many fights with his sisters that had ended similarly. He knew. Heavy forced the doctor to look at him and brushed away his tears. "Doktor, you know I wanted this. Wanted you to fall in love with good woman."

"I DON'T!" he nearly screamed. "_Ich liebe dich!_"

But it was true. He'd fallen for her.

The arrangement between them was that if Medic found a good woman to have in his life who loved him to matter what, he would marry her and spend the rest of his life with her. In a world that didn't accept people such as them, Heavy knew they could not have a relationship outside of Teufort. They were struggling already as it was to keep it a secret from the other mercs. Medic had agreed wholeheartedly at first, but he found himself growing attached to the large man, until he could hardly imagine life without him.

"Doktor," Heavy tried again, "She only say angry things because she is afraid. She is afraid of losing Doktor. Afraid of being hurt, of _you _getting hurt."

With that realization, Medic glanced up at Misha with glassy eyes and an uncertain gaze. Was that the reason? Was she afraid? Then he's remembered her confession of never having a boyfriend, never being in a relationship, and the idea suddenly didn't seem too farfetched.

"Vell… It doesn't matter. I don't vant to be vith her. She's loud and too strong, and she alvays smells of zhe woods like some sort of… _animal."_

"Doktor, that sounds awful lot like Heavy."

Medic's eyes widened. _That sounds an awful lot like __**Heavy.**_

The Russian laughed again and pecked his lover's head. "Is what I always wanted, for Doktor to find woman. Is hard because of your… _particular _tastes. But you _found _her. You found _me_ in her."

"… Ja. Ja, I suppose I did."

Now the larger man stood up, forcing Medic to look at him once again and wiping the last of his tears away.

"Now, you must find way to make nice with Sparky. Must not let her anger throw you off. She is afraid that she loves you. You must show her there is no reason to be afraid. Show her love is nice."

"Heavy," he breathed, "I don't want zhis to be our goodbye. Not like zhis… Please. Show me… one more time. Show me how much you care."

The Russian finally broke down. A single tear trickled down his cheek. Medic dabbed at it affectionately, tenderly, and then, just like so many nights before, they were one.

* * *

"My name's Yìyuàn," Pyro said to Theodora, trying to make conversation. The Chinese girl threaded her fingers together and stared at them when she received no response. She'd only just barely sat down, but she could sense the storm of emotions threatening to flood out of her friend.

It was the middle of the day, but it was still bitterly cold. The frost still seeped through Sparky's hood when she breathed, though it was closed tightly around her mouth and nose. Pyro, on the other hand, simply continued to wear her flame retardant suit, which was apparently enough to ward off the horrible weather.

Yìyuàn didn't know what to say to her. She knew she was upset, and she didn't want to push her limits with her only friend. So she talked to herself.

"I was born here, in America, to a Chinese speaking family. My father left for the Gold Rush and never came back. We never knew what happened to him, my mother and I. We don't know if he left, or died. I grew up being mocked for not having a father, but it was mostly because I was Chinese. If you look different, you get mocked. It's not a good thing. For them, that is."

Teddy's head raised slightly. Only slightly.

"I didn't mind it. It made me stronger. And I always had my imagination to retreat to if it became too much. I still have it with me now. I don't need the opinions of others to determine my life. It was their own waste of time. I was fine. They can call out my yellow skin and my almond eyes, but it's their own time they're wasting. I don't mind, really. I never knew what happened to any of them. They grew up. Went away. But I never grew up. In here?" Pyro pointed to her head. "I'm still a little girl. But it's because I choose to be. Because I choose to stay little. Because sometimes, the littlest are the strongest."

The Canadian knew that was true. She'd experienced it first hand. Through her hood, she looked at Yìyuàn. But there was a screen blocking her face. No one could see her expression.

"Why do I stay little?" Yìyuàn rhetorically asked. "Well, it's simple, really. My childhood was the best years of my life. I remember it like it was minutes ago. I was rarely sad, because I wasn't always… _there, _you know? But when I was… I wanted to die."

"… really?"

"Yeah. Really."

Theodora pulled her knees up to her chest. "What kept you from doing it?"

"My name."

"Your name?"

"Yìyuàn. It means 'Hope'."

A light snow had begun to fall. Teddy pulled off her hood. Her eyes were red and swollen, her nose runny.

"Hope," she repeated to herself. "Hope. Y-yeah. Nice name."

Pyro took off her mask as well. Her hair was now a buzz cut, and her burn scars were well apparent.

"Your class name… Sparky… it can mean several things. Ingenuitive. Contagious, even. You know, like a spark on grass. Because one spark is all it takes to start a fire, Theodora. And… well, I think you have. In more ways than one, you've started a raging fire that I don't think any of us can put out on our own. You've changed things around here. For better or worse, I'm still not sure. We all have yet to find out."

An uncertain hug was given by the fire lover, then her mask was on, and she was off and away. Teddy stared after her, processing her analogy on her presence in the RED base. For better? Or for worse?

In more ways than one, it had all been for worse.

* * *

The first day of battle in Coldfront was always the worst. Running around in the cold snow was not what some of the mercs were accustomed to. Heavy, Medic and Theodora seemed to have little to no problems out there, but southerners like Engie and foreigners like Spy all had trouble getting through the white powder.

Not only that, but Sparky was unfamiliar with the concept of Control Points. It took a good deal of explaining before RED could get on the offensive again rather than the defensive.

Nevertheless, RED had another victory against the BLUs, and that satisfied them all despite their cold, aching joints.

The locker room was light and merry as eight of the ten joked and threw around harmless insults that got them all riled up and ready for a party. Demo left with Sniper with the promise of bringing some "real" party gear, and everyone celebrated, even Spy. Part of the reason for this was that the compromise had been altered to being only a month away instead of two. All REDs were relieved for that.

It was just Heavy, Medic and Sparky by the time the rest of them had finished putting away their gear and heading off to do their own thing. The German stared at the vest in his hands tiredly, knowing that Heavy was silently going to push him to talk to Theodora. But he couldn't bring himself to do it. It was just… _hard_.

One stern look from the giant was enough. He left the room to leave the two alone to talk it out.

Medic sighed through his nostrils, heart pounding. "Theodora."

"You want me to apologize?" she assumed. Without waiting for a reply, she continued, "You're right. I should have never said anything. I shouldn't even know in the first place. I had a headache one night before we had to share the room, and I… _heard_. It's my fault, and I shouldn't use that as blackmail on you."

"Zhat's not vhat I-"

Teddy whirled around the same time Medic did, wearing only an undershirt and boxer briefs. It took a lot for Medic to keep his face from going red.

"I don't know what you want to say, but I don't want to hear it."

She didn't mean it in a rude way, Medic knew. Her voice betrayed it with the small quiver.

"I just… I can't let my guard down like that again. I can't… I can't get… _attached. _Every time I do, I get let down. I'm sorry."

She pushed her way past him quickly with the rest of her clothes in her arms, too afraid of the tears threatening to fall over to finish putting them on in front of him. Medic looked after her, thinking in overdrive to find a way to get her to stay.

"_Mein- _my name is Bernhard!"

The door clicked closed. She was gone.


	13. Disaster

The talking was light and merry at the small party Demo and Sniper had set up, men left and right getting drunk, dancing, telling tales of old times on the job. Even Spy was a little tipsy on not only the drinks, but the happy aura as well. The best part about it all was that Scout shut his mouth when he'd had one too many, so there was no pointless blabbering. Every conversation had a purpose.

Engie strummed his guitar in the corner lazily, stopping every minute to take another swig of his beer. Soldier sat next to him, surprisingly calm for the occasion. Every now and then, one would whisper something to the other, and the other's face would get quite red. Whatever it was, the sound of the radio tuned it out, so the words were their own to share.

Pyro wasn't there, of course. A celebration like this would require her mask to be removed. Then everyone would know. One person was enough. Everyone else was having a fantastic time. Even Medic and Teddy, who sat on opposite sides of the room, felt at peace. At ease. Things were changing. Things were going to go back to the way they once were.

But the air was thick with uncertainty. Sparky tried to ignore it, but Medic embraced it. He considered the different possibilities. The different outcomes of what he was about to attempt. He embraced them all. He set aside his concerns and anxiety and thought long and hard about it.

A drunk Demoman and Sniper approached Teddy on unsteady feet, wobbling through the other mercs to get to the woman. She looked on expectantly.

"Can I help you?" she asked when they finally arrived and could clearly see the predatory expressions on their faces.

"Uh, y-yeah," Sniper stuttered. "I wanna… uh… I wanna… lick ya out. Wanna make you scream… pretty little virgin, ya are." Demo nodded in agreement, swaying to the nodding of his head.

She shook her head. "Sorry, boys. I don't do one night stands."

Demo placed a large palm on one of her breasts and slurred, "Ai, come on now, lass, I 'kin show ya a goo' ol' time, tasty sausage wrapped in yer-"

The Scott didn't get to finish. The woman uppercutted him in the jaw, and next, he lay sprawled on the floor in front of her. Sniper did his best to whirl around and get away as soon as he got the message. Demo followed as soon as he gathered his senses again. The party had gone on undisturbed.

Sparky rubbed the bridge of her nose and sighed. Every inch of her was aching from the cold weather and long day. Really, she just wanted to go to bed. But this room was far warmer than any other due to the fire and mass of bodies. She could give up sleep for some warmth.

When she looked up again, Medic was there. It was the first time she noticed his lab coat was gone, and he was just in his vest. He looked concerned.

"Ah you alright?" he asked.

"I've got a bit of a headache, but I'm fine," she told him.

The doctor placed his hands on his hips and looked around the room. "I can tell you don't vant to be here, _frauline._ Vhy don't you leave? You can go back to zhe room if you vish."

"The room's cold."

"You should get up and move about. It vill help to get your blood flowing and keep you varm." Without waiting for a reply, he pulled her to her feet and lead her to the least dense part of the room, which happened to be near Engie and Soldier. "I need to talk vith you anyvays."

"We don't need to…" she trailed off, looking at anything but him. The German took her hands and placed them on his shoulders while his went to her waist.

"Zhis is a party, und ve ah going to dance vhether you like it or not," Medic grinned. He started to move to the beat of the music, pulling her with him when she refused to move. "Now, I need you to listen to me, Theodora. I need to haff an _actual _conversation vith you. I need you to _communicate_."

Her face grew slightly red, then she sighed, and looked at him.

"Fine. You get three questions. Then I want you to let me go, and leave me alone."

"Fair enough. First question: You said you loved me. Do you still?"

"Next question."

"_Nein, _I vant an answer. It's only three questions, Miss Sparks. You never gave any guidelines, so you vill answer me, or else…" Medic leaned in close to her ear and whispered, "_or else I vill drug you und take you far, far avay, und __**take you**__._"

The Canadian gulped, face heating up exponentially.

"You wouldn't."

"I vould. Und I vill. Answer."

She glanced around, making sure no one was within earshot, then leaned in closer and hissed, "Yeah, so what? You have Heavy, you're at least ten years older than me, and you live halfway around the world from me. There's no way-"

"Question two," he continued, "Ah you jealous of Heavy?"

"Yeah, sure, next."

"Look at me und say it, _frauline_. Say it clearly."

Teddy glared at him with an insatiable mix of lust and hate.

"I'm jealous of Heavy. Next. Question."

Medic grinned maliciously at the smaller merc's burning face. Things were going just as he had anticipated.

"Heavy left me," he told her. Her expression was priceless. Her face went deathly pale and she trembled. "He left me _because _of you. Because he vants me to be vith you. He alvays vanted me to find a voman, because ve could never vork in zhe real vorld."

They had been working their way towards a wall, and now her back was pressed tightly against it as she gazed up at him with a doe's eyes.

"Und I vould be lying if I said I did not find you attractive. I vould also be lying if I said I haff not fallen for you. So zhis is _mein _last und final question. Vhy… vhy do you treat me so poorly? Vhat haff I done to deserve it?"

"Nothing," Theodora whispered.

"Zhen _vhy?_" he tried again.

"I won't answer that. You can threaten me with whatever you like, but I will not answer that, not matter what."

That hadn't been part of the plan. Medic stood up straight and stared down forcefully.

"I haff my vays, Theodora, of getting vhat I vant. So you may eizher answer me yourself, or I can _force _it out of you later."

She'd had enough. She mustered all her strength and shoved him back hard enough to make him stumble and fall, head hitting the floorboards noisily. Many stopped to stare. Teddy pointed an angry finger at the German and growled, "Look, you _fuck_, I'm stronger than you think. I'm stronger than _all _of you think! So stop thinking you can get whatever the _fuck _you want from me! I am not the team _bitch!_"

To emphasise her point, she bitterly stomped on Medic's balls, tearing a scream from him that would make Scout look manly. Then, without another sound, she stormed from the room, leaving eight baffled mercenaries to decipher what Medic and her had argued about.

* * *

"You're not going to give up, are you?" Heavy asked.

"_Nein, _Misha. If anyzhing, I'm more determined zhan before to vin her heart," Medic consoled him. "She must be so frightened to fall in love. To get in a relationship."

The party had died down to only five mercs being in the room, and Medic and Heavy had settled down for a game of chess. Sniper, Spy and Demo were the only other ones left, and they were watching TV at the other end of the room.

"But, to be honest," Medic confessed, "I envy her. She is strong in vays I could never be. To lose your mozher… zhat is not something I can imagine. It seems almost impossible, and yet… Ve live in such a cruel world, Heavy."

"Da, Doktor. Is cruel." The Russian stared at his remaining pieces: a king, a queen, and a knight. He picked up the knight without thinking, then glanced down at the queen. It was a knight's duty to protect his king, but also his queen above all. And they were his last three pieces. He put the knight back down, then picked it up again. Then he picked up his queen.

Medic waited.

Something looked off about these pieces in particular. When he put them side by side, their faces had hardly any difference. This was a very detailed chess set: the knight and queen weren't this similar as far as he remembered. He flipped them over and stared at the bottom, to see if they belonged to a different set. There were two very familiar letters on each of them. On the bottom of the knight, "_T.P.". _Under the queen, "_S.D."._ And if he were to rearrange them, or put the knight and queen back to back...

And he knew.

"_О, ебать меня!_" Misha dropped the pieces in surprise, leaning back in his chair quickly, almost falling out. Medic stared, confused. Before he could ask what was wrong, Heavy stumbled to his feet and spewed out, "Doktor, must go, forgot to, uh, _идет разговор, который должен присутствовать в._"

And just as quickly as Theodora had left him earlier, Heavy was gone as well from Medic. At this point, the doctor was feeling very alone. Abandoned, he would even dare to say. So he hurriedly packed the game away and trotted briskly down the hall to the Infirmary, hoping someone would be there.

Meanwhile, Heavy had gone outside, looking for Theodora. This weather was no problem for him, but it was getting dark. And with the dark came creatures with hearts just as black.

"Sparky!?" he called out. "Sparky! Come out! Need to talk! Know secret, must talk! Sparky!"

The wind picked up, blowing the top layer of the new fallen snow and temporarily blinding the giant. When he opened his eyes again, it was there. Not Sparky. But the Plague Doctor. The figure looked even more daunting at night. Heavy folded his arms and sniffed.

"_Неt. _I need Sparky. No time for games from leetle Doktor. Is important."

The hooded figure was holding a pot with hot coals in it, and it offered the warm aura to Heavy. He held his hands out to warm them, knowing the Doctor probably would have something to say. Something important.

"So you know our secret, I heard, my Russian companion?"

"Da. You or her left very big clue on chess pawns."

"Her, me, us, we are so similar I hardly see a difference, personally." The Doctor shifted in its now thick coat and sighed. "But what is there to talk about? You know the secret, you know everything."

"But do not know _why_. Is very important detail you have left out."

"I believe the _how _is more important at this point. Even Spy didn't take the time to think about it. The only other one who knows is Engineer. You and him are the only ones I trust to not tell a soul. Not even the Medic may know. Do you understand why that is?" The beady eyes gazed at Heavy expectantly.

"Is stupid. I understand, but stupid," Heavy chided loudly. "Doktor think so highly of you and then you… you are… _this_."

"Then you will not tell." It wasn't a question. It was a command.

"Will not tell. But you must tell me everything. I must know why."

The Plague Doctor took back the pot of coals, tucking it away in the folds of its coat.

"Here and now is not the proper setting. You will know, but not today. You need to hurry back to the base. Something is stirring in the air at the BLU base, the Spy and Engineer are all in a tizzy. Keep every member close, or at least the ones you can find. I will worry about the stragglers. Go."

The wind picked up once again, but Heavy saw the Plague Doctor go. He saw the hood go down in the wind and the hair that had been covered by it. And now, it was beyond a doubt the identity of the red robed figure to him.

* * *

No one questioned Heavy when he told them he had spoken with the Plague Doctor and that it was necessary to gather everyone in the same room. Of course, they picked the Infirmary, should something go wrong. It was the safest room in any of the bases.

Respawn doesn't work without power. It's a known fact. Power outages are bad because of it. Heavy had just enough time to gather everyone before the entire base was swallowed by darkness, and the hum of electricity went quiet.

That is, everyone except Scout and Sparky.

Engineer panicked as soon as the fact was realized, stuttering, "It- it just ain't right. We gotta go get Scout. We gotta get them both. If we all go together-"

"Too dangerous," Spy said from his corner, taking a long drag of his cigarette. For once, Medic didn't pester him about it. "They could easily separate us and then pick us off one by one. Without power, this death will be our last should we be reckless. I'm almost certain that they have entered the base at this point."

Pyro sat at the door like a puppy waiting for its master to come home. Staring anxiously. Occasionally putting a hand to the door as if she could _feel _them coming. Medic placed a hand on the fire lover's shoulder.

"You ah vorried about Sparky."

"Hdda. Hdda hudd huudaa hdda."

Medic swallowed, an old lantern in his hand. Teddy was out there. She could die. As the Medic of the team, he couldn't allow that. It was his job to keep everyone on the team alive, and he'd be damned if he didn't get the job done. Without any warning, he bolted out the infirmary doors, fully equipped, despite the loud and frightened protests by the others.

The halls seemed to close in on him the farther down he went, but he kept his head high and his breathing steady. Now was not the time for panic. Panic could be fatal. Before he knew it, he was in the old Intelligence room, which was never used anymore. Coldfront just had nothing interesting to report, but the harsh terrain made for a good base. That's why the battle mode had been changed to Control Points long before the present Nine had been enlisted in RED.

There was a figure crouched behind the Intelligence pedestal, and another reaching down to pick it up. Medic's breath stopped.

"Come now. Scout, we haven't time for you to curl up and cry. The BLUs are looking for you all as we speak. Get to your feet NOW."

It was the Plague Doctor. Medic sighed with relief, and walked to them.

"Scout!" he called. Both heads turned and stared. "Scout, ve must move! Zhe darkness vill protect us if ve move quickly, _bitte_! I vill protect us-"

"Leave," the Doctor hissed. "We do not need your assistance, and you are putting us all in more danger by being here."

"I haff a duty to attend to!" Medic spat back. "Und once I get Scout back to zhe Infirmary, I haff to find Sparky!"

The Doctor was not in a mood to bargain. It pulled Scout to his feet and shoved him towards Medic.

"Take the boy. I'll get the girl. There's no fighting me on this one."

"_You _take Scout. I'm going after Theodora."

"Who the _fuck _is Theodora!?" Scout whimpered. "C'mon, man, I just wanna get outta here!" Without waiting for an escort, Scout ran up the stairs and out of sight. The Doctor followed him with only its dark glass eyes until it was certain he would make it back alright. Then it turned back to Medic bitterly.

"Medic, you will return to the Infirmary at once, or I will force you."

"I von't do it. I haff to find her!"

"This is NOT UP FOR DISCUSSION, BERNHARD!"

The sudden change shocked them both. This was the first time the red vigilante had shown any emotion besides pain. Though that _was _on Medic's mind, he was more focused on the last word it had spat out.

"How… How do you know my name? I haff only told it to _one _person. _One_. It vasn't even Heavy. It vas…"

"Enough," the Doctor said, back to little to no emotion. "I know where Theodora is hidden, and you are wasting my time by arguing. Return to your room, doctor. NOW."

The stare it gave him was intense, but he didn't budge. The Plague Doctor bolted towards him, but still he did not move. Medic was shoved to the floor, and then there was the sound of tearing flesh and a static cry. The Doctor's body lay next to him on the floor, blood pooling from a wound in its stomach.

The German gasped and skittered away just as the BLU Spy de-cloaked. He tossed his cigarette onto the Doctor's mask and chuckled.

"I'm afraid your good will has gotten the best of you, you _imbécile_."

"No!" Medic shouted. He whipped out his saw and ran towards the Spy, but large hands lifted him from the ground and caused him to drop it.

"_Πού νομίζεις ότι πας, γιατρέ?_" the BLU Heavy asked. "Do not misbehave now, Doktor."

"Let me go!" he screamed. He pounded on the Greek's hands, to no avail. The BLU Soldier and Medic joined the group, the Frenchman and American carrying the wounded hero of RED out of the room.

"Ah, what do we have here?" the BLU Medic grinned. "It seems as though our little plan was successful, thanks to our Engineer's handiwork and our Spy's quick thinking. We have the most valuable assets to RED all under one roof, and right in the palm of our hands. _Wunderbar!_"

"You _monsters!" _Medic cried. Tears were flowing down his cheeks freely, too shocked by the Doctor's grave sacrifice to control his feelings. If that wound wasn't patched up quickly, the Doctor was going to die. Theodora would be heartbroken.

"Monsters… hmm, interesting wording, _mein _RED counterpart. Both teams practice the same murderous skills on zhe field, so why not off the field? We only haff anozher month to fuck with you and the rules, so we are taking advantage of it while we can. You and the Plague bastard are going to die, but not without a little _parting gift _to your _kamerads._"

The BLU motioned for his Russian servant to follow, and he did, Medic still wrapped tightly in his grip. Seconds later, the only evidence of their presence in the room was the small pool of blood on the floor.


	14. Sparky

Medic was shoved down to the floor on the BLU Control Point next to the Plague Doctor, whose wounds had been dressed just enough to keep it alive just a little longer. Scout, Sniper, Demo and Engineer all had their guns pointed at their heads in case they tried anything funny. The cold snow bit through their clothes and cooled their knees considerably, even with the Doctor's thick robes. The BLU Medic made the final adjustments to the camera with the Soldier, then paged the REDs.

Heavy's face appeared on the screen next to the camera, and Medic whimpered past the gag in his mouth. The only sound from the Doctor was static.

"What have you done!?" Heavy hissed, seeing everything clearly but wishing he couldn't.

"I have begun a revolution, you Soviet scum," the BLU Medic laughed. "With your precious doctors captured, Blutarch will have no reason to carry out the agreed on compromise, and we will win this wretched war in a definite swoop! I almost feel sorry for you idiots for not thinking to do the same before we did."

Every merc on camera nodded in agreement, and RED Heavy roared bitterly.

"NO! Is NOT how this works!"

Medic leaned in close to the camera so that the REDs could see every movement of his face.

"It is now."

He backed away and cleared his throat, prepping for a glorious moment in BLU history.

"What you see before you are the shells of two once great mercenaries who fought so valiantly against us in the Gravel Wars. But here, kneeling before us, they are nothing but broken and demolished relics. They no longer have any value or worth in this world. But one of these hides a valuable secret; one we are determined to uncover for the greater good of Builder's League United."

Everyone knew what he was talking about. The Plague Doctor shuddered, tensing then relaxing as the pain overtook it. Its head was yanked back by the BLU doctor by the beak.

"This _criminal _to our cause has succumbed to our will with help from your stubborn Medic, who would not return to your sanctuary because he just _had _to find the girl… Theodora, was it?"

Engineer's shotgun neared his head, forcing him to nod out a yes before the Texan would back away.

"Yes, Theodora. The Sparky class, unique to your band of weak fools. It is because of your doctor's stubbornness that we have your savior kneeling before us today. And now, we will discover who is behind this mask, who has caused us so much pain and misery. Behold!"

The mask was slowly, agonizingly torn from its head, but to RED Medic, everything was happening in slow motion. First, the reveal of slightly tan, light skin, and a gentle neck. Then, pale, swollen lips, panting in an attempt to ignore the pain from its stomach wound. A prominent button nose, bleeding as well. At this point, Medic could almost recognize who it was.

Light, grey-blue eyes damp with tears stared ahead, afraid to look anywhere else, especially at the Medic. Then, the hair, which had not been cut since their arrival, tumbled down from their confines at the top of the mask, barely reaching past their chin. Blonde.

It was Teddy.

Even the BLU Medic dropped the mask in surprise, and the other mercs lowered their guns, shocked. RED Scout was freaking out over the transmission, appalled and disgusted that he had fallen for that "Pine wood hippie". Soldier was screaming.

"You… You're the cause of all our troubles!?" BLU Medic exclaimed. He yanked her back by her hair, tearing a muffled cry from her sealed lips. "You swine! Vhat do you haff to say for yourself!?"

RED Medic slumped forward, trying to catch her eye. He mumbled past his gag.

"Tddy..?"

"I… I have done this all my life. From the moment my mother perished, I disguised myself to do good will without hurting the ones I love. Of all the times I have had to don a different mask, put on a different voice, or use a different method of of attack, BLU was, by far, the most boring challenge I have had to face."

Her head slammed against the metal of the control point as Medic kicked her, and she was silent. Both Medics panicked. RED spat out his gag and started to scream.

"Teddy!"

"Turn off zhe transmission!"

"Heavy, get help-"

"Turn it off now! We'll deal with-"

"Get _frauline _Pauling! Teddy-"

"Shut the fucking thing off!"

RED stared at the screen long after the other team had become nothing but static and white noise, dumbfounded, afraid, shocked beyond words and actions. Scout was the first to recover. He bolted for the briefcase alarm button and slammed it hastily. It was the only machinery that was battery operated and not attached to the rest of the bases' power. It would get Pauling's attention.

It had to.

* * *

The BLU Medic's ambulance was cold and uncomfortable, but it gave Theodora a place to lay down at least. Wherever they were being taken, it was far away. They'd been driving for twenty or so minutes. Medic sat on the floor next to her and tore off one of her sleeves.

"B-Bernh-hard-"

"I have to change your bandages, or it vill get infected," he told her. He sat her up against the wall despite her pained protests, and began to change the gauze.

"I should haff known from a mile avay zhat you vere zhe Plague Doctor. There vere so many obvious signs, and I ignored them all, ve all did, and if ve had known, ve vouldn't be here."

Her breathing was short, pained and ragged now. her body was stiff with pain, and she groaned with each little movement.

"But you wouldn't have let me do the things I did," Teddy countered. "None of you would have. I know, it's happened before. I did what I had to do." His gloved fingers grazed her open gash, and she threw her head back and screamed.

"Ngn- Doc, no!"

"I'm sorry!" he exclaimed. "I-I'm so used to zhe Medigun… _Gott_. Zhis is not good."

Now that the old fabric was off, he could replace it, and he did so carefully, wrapping it tightly but not shifting it as he did so. The Canadian whimpered and grabbed his arm.

"F-fuck!" More blood was already starting to seep through, making the red even darker. Medic sighed shakily once he was done wrapping it.

"Zhat's all I can do," he told her woefully. "J-just keep zhe pressure on it. Don't let it bleed any more zhan it already has."

He guided her hands to her abdomen and pressed, making her back arch and causing her to cry out again. With her eyes squeezed shut, she gasped, "Th-there's got to be a better way to d-do this."

The doctor glanced up at her, though he was trying to avoid the painful sight.

"If zhere vas, don't you zhink I vould haff implemented it? Zhis is zhe best ve can do. I'm not going to let you die."

Her eyes, now glazed over, stared at him. Sparky's breathing calmed, but only slightly, just so she was calm enough to ask him.

"You… you still care… don't you? About me."

"Yes. Even more so now. You lead me on to believe zhat you hated me, and yet all zhis time, you vere only trying to protect me." He attempted to lace his fingers through hers, but she pulled away, scowling.

"I was trying to protect _all _of you-"

"And yet you chose a Plague Doctor as your persona. Somezhing you knew I vould despise."

Teddy's glance darted away.

"It was a coincidence."

Medic began to put the pieces together.

"You did not vant me to fall for you zhe same way you did for me. Zhat's it, isn't it? No, I know it is. So you pretended to hate me, for all zhese months, and I _believed _it. Fuck, did I believe it." He leaned back bewildered. "And you pushed me avay vhen you realized I vas getting too close. You blackmailed me _avay_."

"It doesn't matter anymore," the woman choked. "I can't be with anyone. I'm always putting my life on the line to protect others, and I can't let anyone down by not coming home someday."

"Zhat's vhat Respawn is for, _dummkopf_."

He grasped her chin in his hand and forced her to look at him.

"Teddy…" he whispered. "Teddy, ve can be togezher. Ve _can't _die. Ve're gods."

She glared at him, eyes wet, but he could tell her resolve was beginning to crumble.

"And what about when the job ends? What if something happens when Respawn is powered off, like it is now? What about when Redmond or Blutarch dies? What then, genius?" she asked bitterly.

He'd thought about that many times when he was with Heavy, despite knowing the Russian would never go for it. His lip trembled when he grinned, and he pressed down on her stomach to help with her bleeding.

"You'll come vith me," Medic promised. "To Germany. Or ve can stay here in America. Yes… zhat sounds nice. A new life in America. Or ve can return to Canada. I'd get my medical license back under a different name. I'd support us, and I vouldn't steal any skeletons zhis time. I'll behave, just… just for you…"

His head drooped, quiet sobs racking him. They weren't going to make it out of this. Not this time, not with Theodora's condition. They were too far away to get any help.

After a minute or so, her hands threaded through his hair and pulled him close to her. He had to readjust his position, so that he was to her side, hands still firmly planted on her stomach. He nuzzled into her neck, and she sighed, releasing a bit of tension.

"I'm not scared to die," Teddy told him. She was shaking, obviously cold, so he wrapped them both in his lab coat. "My mom's waiting for me, anyways. She won't be too happy I'm so early, but…"

It was the last either of them said for the last ten minutes of the trip.

* * *

Both of them were blindfolded, hands tied behind their backs, and lead to the edge of a cliff. Theodora fell part of the way there, and was kicked back to her feet by the Soldier.

"Get up, Maggot," he sneered. "I don't have time for your shit."

"Perhaps ve will just let her bleed out next to his corpse," the BLU Medic chuckled. "That punishment would be suitable enough, even if she does survive. Besides, we still have three weeks to kill her."

"Three weeks to kill them all," Engie agreed. "Damn straight."

A light snow had begun to fall in the freezing night. Medic could feel her body shutting down from where he stood.

"You vill pay for zhis," he promised against his chattering teeth. "RED vill come down on you vith zhe most brutal force you can imagine."

"Then I 'imagine' we'll be fine, Cupcake," Soldier growled. "Turn around. Judgment day."

They did as they were commanded with some help from rough hands. The sound of a gun's safety being switched off had never been so loud or terrifying.

"Steady…" Medic crooned to his comrades taking aim. "Let's make this quick, ja?"

The REDs wanted so badly to be able to touch each other, but they had no idea which direction the other was in.

"Teddy…"

"It will hurt less if you relax," she whispered back hoarsely.

"Aim…"

Then, the sound of a butterfly knife. The command to fire never came.

Medic craned his head and hearing to find out what was going on, but all he could hear was the soft crunch of snow coming towards him. His blindfold wand torn off and his binds cut, and as he rubbed circulation back into them, the BLU Spy said, "Don't read too much into it."

As he went to untie Sparky, who was on her knees now, he continued, "We all deserve to die an honorable death. Even if this one doesn't make it…" he pulled her to her feet and gave her to Medic, "... She will have died for a noble cause."

The blood of the Soldier and Engineer stained the snow. Spy had been disguised as the Medic all along. Medic looked at Spy questioningly. "Aren't they going to die? Zhe power-"

"Was only cut off at your base." Just like the RED Spy, he nonchalantly tapped a cigarette out of his pack and lit it. "From what I had seen before we left to bring you here, your allies have set up an effective barrier, though it feels lackluster without your presence."

"Und vhat of zhe Medic?"

"Don't worry about him. He will be back on the field after the loopholes are sealed. He was the mastermind behind the majority of the attacks. Without him, our team will not have the intelligence to come up with another plan to eliminate RED."

"But vhy?"

The BLU Spy tsked and cloaked. "So many questions, so little time. Especially for your woman there."

It was true; her lips were turning blue, and her heartbeat had considerably slowed.

"Head South," the Spy directed them. "As your enemy, I am not going to give you a bus ticket. You are on your own from here."

Medic waited for more to be said, but the BLU was gone. Without more pause, he turned his attention back to Theodora, who was barely conscious.

"Come on, get up," he urged her. "Ve haff to find shelter."

The BLU ambulance was their only choice. For whatever reason, Spy had not taken it. They hurried back into the back, and Medic shut the doors. Without the vehicle being on, it was pitch black. Before they'd hopped in, Medic had grabbed his Medigun from the front and powered it on.

"Don't you die on me, Teddy," he warned her. "Don't you _dare_."

He knelt in front of her, shaking her to keep her awake.

"Don't close your eyes, vhatever you do! Don't do it!"

This time, her hand found his.

"… B-Ber… nhard."

Her head drooped, and her eyes closed. The Medigun was ready for use. He wasted no time in firing, praying to everything that it wasn't too late. The wound in her stomach patched up, but because of the late use, the healing wasn't perfect. It was only reduced to a nasty cut that would definitely scar. The rest of her healed fine.

When she was healed, he tossed the weapon aside, uncaring if it broke or not. Medic lifted her into his arms and placed his ear to her heart. Faint, and slow, but there. Her breathing had calmed to, and a bit of color had returned to her face.

It didn't mean anything. At this point, it was a 50/50 chance that she would recover. The odds were not in her favor, and he knew this. Medic bit his lip and pulled her closer into his arms. All he could do now was keep her warm and wait.

But he was so scared… so afraid to lose her. The pain kept him from sleep.


	15. Übercharge

_Things get hot in this chapter, but no sex yet. Ironic that it gets hot, considering they're in Coldfront._

_-Dylawa_

* * *

She'd moved in her fitful sleep. She'd moved, and Medic knew she would be okay. He almost cried with joy. When she finally woke, he bombarded her with questions on how she felt, if she could move, if she was hungry, if she remembered what had happened last night. After he realized she was tired, he backed off, producing a candy bar from one of his pockets and offering it to her.

"I don't like candy." Sparky's voice was weak.

He didn't take the bar back, instead opening it, taking a bite, then placing the rest in her hand.

"You need to eat. No vone knows ve're here, so ve'll have to head back on our own. You'll need zhe energy."

Reluctantly, Theodora began to eat. She didn't have the strength to argue. Then she glanced at the Medigun, and an idea occurred to her.

"Do you think an Übercharge might help a little?"

Medic knew what her plan was.

"Perhaps, but I'm afraid zhe crash vill leave you too veak to move aga- you… you haven't been Übercharged yet, have you?"

The confusion on her face when he started explaining the after effects was enough.

"You never asked me," he told her. "Und I simply vasn't healing you at zhe time, I guess."

Theodora shook her head. "Do you think you could..?"

Now he seriously thought about it. He stared at the gun, expression constantly changing.

"I… I suppose the benefits outveigh zhe negatives." He snatched the weapon and pulled back on the handle, waking her fully and building charge.

"I always loved the feeling of the Medigun healing me," she sighed contentedly. "Sometimes I just enjoy it, other times, I pretend its my mom. I pretend she's here, with me, healing me."

Medic simply nodded, swallowing thickly. "Everyvone does seem to love zhe fumes. Some… more zhan ozhers."

His cheeks tinted a bit with a light hue of pink. She had a feeling about just how much some people liked the Medigun.

"Does it really feel that good?" Teddy asked curiously.

"If you're exposed for long enough, then ja, ja, it does. I discovered it a few days after recieving zhe equipment, by accident. I'd left it on vhile I vent to do some papervork, und… vell, after a bit, I, uh, got closer, and laid on zhe table, und…" His blush deepened, and he trailed off. She didn't push him to finish. The image was enough. But there was one thing she wanted to know.

"Hands free?"

"Ja. It vas… it vas almost as good as flying vith you."

At first she was confused, but then she remembered their escape from the temporary BLU base back at Teufort. He'd been so… _thrilled._ To just soar through the air like that, and to be honest, she'd been excited too. The freedom was intoxicating.

She'd _felt _how much he loved it from his position on top of her. It felt…

"Would you want to do it again?" she asked with a grin. "I'd take you, or even build you your own. Well, I'd have Engie do it. He's the builder, I'm the mastermind behind it though."

"Oh, yes, yes, I'd love that!" Medic exclaimed. "But ve haff to get back alive first."

The Medigun beeped, signalling that the Übercharge was ready. He was quick to get to his feet and pull her up as well. But as soon as she stood up straight, she cried out and doubled over, nearly falling face first into the floor, but Medic caught her.

"I zhink you need zhe charge more zhan I zhought," he sadly mused. "Do you need a moment?"

Teddy shook her head vigorously. "No, no, l-let's go. Please, Bernhard."

Her pleading tugged at his heartstrings. He kicked open the back of the ambulance and flipped the Übercharge switch. Intense red enveloped her, more than the fumes by themselves, and the shine of the shield spread from her heart to the rest of her body. She gasped at the new sensation, energized and warm.

"Go!" he told her. "It doesn't last long!" He was shrouded in the same shield, and the effects were doing very obvious things to his body.

She ran from the van at top speed, and Medic trailed closely behind her, keeping the fumes centered on her abdomen where she needed it most. The snow slowed them down considerably, but considering the good weather they'd been blessed with, they were making fine time.

It was a full minute and a half before the Übercharge failed and sputtered to a halt. Theodora gasped as the cold stabbed into her, and she tumbled into the snow. The pain had returned, riper than before but not as bad as the night before. Medic tripped next to her, gasping for breath. He ignored the semi- hard tent in his pants and helped Theodora to her feet.

"How… how vas zhat?" he asked breathlessly.

She wimpered and clung to him like a lifeline, clutching at her stomach with her other hand. "Oh God… Guh… y-yeha… that was… nrgn…"

He draped her arm over his shoulder and began to lead her again through the snow and woods, back to the base.

* * *

"Now that the BLUs are back to their own base and Engie's going to work on fixing the power," Pauling said to the eight remaining REDs, "It's safe for you all to go and search for Medic and Sparky. More likely than not, they were taken North, because it's where the back of BLUs base is. Redmond has called for a ceasefire so that you can proceed safely until you have confirmed your comrade's condition."

"And what if we find them dead?" Spy questioned.

"Th-they ain't gonna be dead!" Scout exclaimed. "I-I mean, come on, Sparky's the freakin' _Plague Doctor!_"

Engie sighed and shook his head sadly. "Well, Medic might make it. But boy, you obviously missed that gut wound on the girl. We'd be lucky if she's in Respawn, let alone still alive."

Heavy, Demo and Pyro nodded sadly in agreement. Miss Pauling sighed.

"We can only hope for the best, men. I can't stick around, but if the worst case scenario happens… well, you have my condolences. Dismissed."

Soldier didn't bother to salute her on the way out.

Heavy's strides were long and purposeful as he made his way to Resupply to get Sacha and a warm coat. He was going to be the first to find them, and get them back if it was the last thing he was going to do. He _knew _they were alive. He just _knew._

A gloved hand stopped him just as he was about to enter. He turned to face Spy, a bit sullen.

"Heavy," he began, "I know this must be hard for you. To lose two whom you are so close to."

"They are not gone."

Spy shook his head. "The chances of their survival with tonight's impending storm are slim. Engineer would have the exact number, but even I know that it's not good. You must be prepared for _anything_."

Heavy batted his hand away and growled, "I am prepared to find them _alive_. Is only possibility. Doktor would say they are 'ingenuitive'. It means smart. So they will be alive. Is only possibility."

As soon as Heavy disappeared behind the door, he lit a smoke and rolled his shoulders. He'd tried to prepare him for the inevitable. He'd tried, and that was all that mattered.

* * *

Progress was slow due to the thick powder and Theodora's condition, but whenever he could, Medic would Übercharge them to get those extra few yards out of the way. But the more he did so, the weaker Theodora became as time went on, to a point where he simply used the healing beam and abandoned the use of the Übercharge.

"I… I gotta stop," she whimpered at one point to him. "I can't…"

He complied silently, clearing a rock of its layer of snow as a place for her to sit. She started to fall so quickly, he had to catched her and ease her down the rest of the way.

"Ve can't rest for long," he warned her. "The longer ve're out here, the more likely ve aren't going to make it back at all."

Her breathing was heavy and labored as she tried to relax, but each deep breath brought a fresh wave of pain to her stomach. It still hurt like hell, burning, it seemed, through every vein in her body. Teddy's head clunked against the tree behind her, bringing down a patch of snow next to her.

Medic placed his medigun on the ground and used it as his own seat, but as soon as he did, there was an unfamiliar beeping sound. He cursed, jumping back to his feet and chanting, "No, no, no, _nein, nein…_"

"What is it?"

He gulped, readjusting his glasses, his breath visible in the afternoon light.

"Zhe medigun is almost out of fumes."

That heavy sentiment chilled them both to the bone, as if they weren't cool enough already.

"How much more do you think we can get out of it?" she asked.

"On zhe lowest setting? Maybe by tonight's end. But zhat's zhe latest, I'm afraid."

"Damn it."

"Ja. Damn it."

Despite her pleading for more time, Medic pulled her to her feet again, wrapping her arm over his neck.

"If ve're going to get as much out of zhis as ve can, ve need to move now."

So they started off again, just as thick storm clouds loomed over the horizon and quickly began to eat at the blue sky. When the snow hit, it was quick and thick, but it was bearable until the winds began. Then it was impossible to seem let alone move.

Teddy shivered uncontrollably, falling down more than was healthy. It took the doctor's keen eye to find a cave where they could hunker down and wait it out.

In the cave, the light of the Medigun was faint, but enough to allow them to see what they were doing. Medic set her down, only to realize she was growing unresponsive with Hypothermia. Her lips were turning blue again.

"Fuck," Medic whispered. He tore off his coat quickly and wrapped the freezing woman in it, then set her in his lap and held her tightly, trying to help her retain body heat as much as possible.

"...B… Behh… Ber… nhard…"

"Look at me, Teddy. Don't close your eyes, not yet, _bitte_."

Her head rotated slowly to meet with his gaze, nerves barely responding to her brain's command. Her chilled breath mingled with his.

"Bern… nhard."

A gloved hand settled itself on the side of her face, cradling her head and pulling her against his shoulder.

"Teddy, wiggle your fingers and toes."

Only her fingers responded, popping out of the coat and grasping to his vest weakly. Her toes did not budge.

"You, toes, Teddy! _Bitte!_" he cried.

"I can't," she whispered against his neck. "Too… too cold…"

He pulled her knees up to her chest and held them there, his other hand still on her head.

"You need to varm up," he panicked, rocking her back and forth. "You need to relax and let zhe heat spread zhrough you, or else-" he coughed on his words, the air too frigid to say much. When her hand reached his face, it was as cold as snow, and he gasped.

"Teddy…"

Medic didn't say anymore. He couldn't. It felt as though his throat had frozen over. All he could hear from her was her rattling breath as she clung to life. Her eyes didn't close. They stayed trained on him, blinking slowly.

Reluctantly, Medic pulled the medigun closer, aimed it at them, and activated the Übercharge in the hopes that it would bring her back from the brink of death. They both gasped as the rays enveloped them again, warming them up, stirring their lust slightly.

He couldn't take it anymore. All day long he'd been charging them again and again, his erection tenting and flagging and tenting again, wanting to hold her and claim her as his.

The desire was too much, and Medic scooped her in closer and took her lips with his. As numb as she was, Theodora still had enough energy to respond, twitching her mouth to show she was interested, but the high whines that escaped her throat spoke of her uncertainty. So he didn't push, simply pecking her again and again with his far warmer mouth until the charge died, along with the Medigun, and they were in darkness, panting and clinging to each other to salvage the warmth that it had given them.

She nestled in closer to him, whimpering and clutching to him like a child would to their mother. He did the same, and when he had his nerves about him again, he coasted his mouth over the skin that he could reach; her eyes, nose, lips.

"Teddy…"

"D-do it again. Ah… ple-b-_bitte_."

Her German took him by surprise, and hearing her beg for him in his mother tongue was too much to resist. When he looked down at her, her eyes were half lidded with confusion and lust. He kissed her again, and this time she was far more responsive, kissing back to the best of her frozen ability. Quickly, he grew more passionate, caressing every inch of her lips with his. When his tongue invaded her mouth, she moaned enthusiastically and threw her head back to give him more access.

"A-ah…" she moaned. It spurred the German onward, and he laid her on the floor gingerly, scrambling on top of her and resuming his attentions to that wonderful mouth.

"J-Ja, _wunderbar,_" he groaned, grinding into her with his clothed erection.

But he was smart enough to know better than to have unprotected sex, especially when she's close to freezing to death and they're tired and dirty in a cave in the middle of nowhere. But only after he was satisfied with their make out session did he fall of to the side and gather her up again, holding her tightly.

"D-doc…" Teddy whispered.

"Stay avake, Teddy," he commanded her. "I'll stay avake too. Don't close your eyes. Look at me."

It was a challenge. To help, she planted her lips on his again, inhaling his scent deeply.

"Then keep me busy."


	16. Heavy

No mercenary was allowed out later than ten o'clock, but that didn't stop Heavy. He had to find them. Though he was cold and tired and the rest of the team had called it quits for the night, he knew that couldn't be afforded. The others knew arguing with him would have no effect. Medic and Sparky were still out there, Respawn and the rest of the power was still out. So they'd returned without him, promising not to say a word to Pauling.

Heavy refused to find them dead.

Pulling his collar tighter around his neck, he hauled Sacha closer and shivered. His feet were beginning to feel like lead, but he'd been through worse. He would make it. As bitter as the storm was, he'd been through worse. Even as the snow bit into his skin and seemed to tear at his clothes, he knew that he'd been through worse. Heavy trekked on to find them.

The subtle stirring of the wind behind him told Heavy to yank his head around. Something had ran past him, behind him. He caught sight, just barely, of a bushy tail. Wolf.

His eyes widened in fear. Wolves were terrible beasts when they were hungry, almost as dangerous as bears back in Siberia. He had no doubt that that wolf was not alone, and he had no doubt that they were _very _hungry if they were hunting him. Especially him.

As soon as he knew how many were hiding in the trees around him- seven- he sighed, sat Sacha down in the snow, and cracked his knuckles.

"_Вы глупые волки. Вы понятия не имеете, кто вы сложным. Но очень хорошо тогда. Приходите и получите некоторые!_"

The ferocious dogs took the challenge willingly, and three charged for him at once, teeth bared, caked with dried blood. Heavy whacked two of them away, but the third leapt and sank its fangs into his shoulder. The Russian fell to his knees, and snapped the attacker's neck, tossing the corpse to the side carelessly. Another three dogs ran in to avenge their fallen brother. Grabbing the first two by their heads, he threw them together, crushing their heads along with the third who had gotten caught in the middle. Their blood painted the left side of his face a deep crimson, his hands drenched, and he again disposed of the bodies quickly.

The last two wolves were not deterred in the slightest, too hungry for common sense to tell them to flee from this giant man. Only one charged forward, but this one was quick, dancing just out of Heavy's reach. While he was distracted, the last wolf leapt, aiming right for his neck.

The echo of Heavy's cry heard moments after whatever had transpired was heard only by hibernating rabbits and deer, uncaring to the fate of him, or the wolves. Whatever had happened was of no concern to them.

* * *

With morning came a fresh breeze, much calmer than the night before.

It wasn't enough. Theodora was dying.

Her stomach wasn't bothering her anymore too badly, but she was too cold. Her body was too weak to hold in the heat it needed to to survive. Medic scooped her into his arms and headed south again, leaving the dead Medigun behind. There were more back on base for this sort of occasion.

"Theodora, vake up," he whispered into her ear. The warmth was what woke her up, not the actual request. "Ve should be zhere by zhe end of zhe day. Please, hold on until then, _mein hübsche kleine Dämon._"

"We're still using that name?" she asked quietly.

Medic chuckled. "You ah a soul zhat inhabits two bodies, two different personas. I vould consider zhat a demon. Und also, you ah a fighter, und you fight bitterly. Zhat's vhat I need you to do now. I need you to fight for me, fight for your life, _bitte_."

Theodora sighed and relaxed in his grip, training her eyes on him just like the night before. But she was uncertain.

"Bernhard."

"Mmh?"

"I… I shouldn't have… shouldn't have let myself go last night, and I-"

He silenced her with another long, passionate kiss, although she protested with tiny squeaks and grunts. When he pulled away, Medic whispered, "Nozhing can keep me avay now, Theodora. Not your fear, not our jobs, not zhe vhole vorld. I vant _you_."

At long last, she gave in fully, clutching his vest again and pulling herself up to his neck. Carrying the Medigun around all day, every day made the woman in his arms no problem. He cradled her close as he trekked the last few miles of their long trip home.

But Theodora was dying. And he knew it.

* * *

"DOKTOR!" Heavy screamed when he saw them come over the hill. He clutched at his bloodied shoulder loosely as he ran to greet his former lover and Theodora. But the closer he got, the more the seasoned Russian could sense it. One of them was weak.

"Misha!" Medic cried out. "Your coat, _bitte! Schnell!_"

He wasted no time in peeling it off, though the fur stuck to the dried clumps of blood on his shoulder and made him wince with pain. Sparky was thrust inside, shivering uncontrollably, and Heavy held her close.

"Vhat happened to your shoulder!?" Medic demanded to know as they briskly jogged back.

Heavy grunted and shrugged, bringing only more pain to his shoulder. "Leetle wolves are no match for Heavy Weapons Guy. Is fine."

The German stared at his companion and knew the pain ran deeper than physical. He was emotionally stressed, having been looking for them for who knows how long. But it wasn't just that. It was the connection they _used _to have. How close they used to be. It was torturing the Russian.

"Misha…" he reached for Heavy's arm, but he took a step away.

"Shoulder is fine," he huffed.

"I vasn't looking at your shoulder."

Misha slowed his pace and glanced down at his former lover, unsure of what to think or do. Medic took advantage of his momentary confusion and leaned up and pecked him on the cheek. But to his surprise, the taller recoiled in horror and cursed in Russian, gesturing madly to Teddy.

"You are keesing wrong one Doktor!"

At first, there was a ripe, uncertain silence, then a chuckle. Bernhard stayed cool and collected, even smirking a bit. "I haff vonderful news to tell you, but it von't matter unless ve get Theodora back alive. Come, _schnell! _As fast as you can, Heavy!"

His mind ran rampant with a million questions, but Heavy obeyed, in the meantime glancing down at Sparky. She didn't look good at all. Her skin was almost as white as the snow beneath her, and her lips were a dull shade of violet. Yet, all this time, her eyes remained wide open, like a child trying to memorize its mother's face. Heavy brushed a stray hair out of her face as she whispered, "S… S-sh-sha-hare… Sh-share…"

Not understanding, Misha assumed it was that she was becoming delirious, and threw the coat's hood over her face, so that it looked as though he was only carrying a coat, and that the woman wasn't hiding inside.

"Will keep Sparky warm," he apologized. "Breathe deep, breath will warm you up now."

Teddy shook her head subtly, as best as she could, but didn't attempt to speak again. But a muffled yelp of "Bernhard!" was heard when the giant tripped over a hidden rock. Medic ran a hand over the fabric and consoled her.

"It's alright, _mein_ _Schatz _vill not let you fall. Ve ah almost zhere, just hold on _Liebling_, _bitte_."

_Schatz _was a name Medic would often use for Heavy when they were alone together, and he'd stopped using it after they had left each other. Why was Medic using it now? He had Theodora, who he was calling _Liebling,_ apparently. Heavy was more confused and concerned than ever before.

* * *

RED was a picture of immaculate silence as they waited for Engie to finally fix the power, and for Heavy to tune in on the radio to give them an update on the search for their beloved doctors. No one was moving. No one made noise. Not even Scout. His eyes were trained on the radio, along with Spy. Statues of anxiety.

The clock ticked away on the wall.

Pyro had her masked head in her hands, trying her damn hardest not to fall asleep, unlike Demo, who was passed out upside down on the couch, and Sniper, who simply didn't have the strength to continue to worry about his companions.

And Soldier, all the while, was mumbling silently to his beloved shovel in the corner, giving soundless praises and scorns to the inanimate object.

And then, life.

The radio was a mess of static and high pitched hums as the station attempted to correct itself for the transmission. Spy was quick to aid it, turning the knob with nervous precision, until a familiar voice crackled to existence.

"... Hello? He...llo? Is anyvone zhere? Please, respond, _schnell!_"

"We are here, Docteur," Spy quickly replied. "What is your condition? Where is Heavy?"

"Ve can see zhe base!" he exclaimed. "Ve ah on our vay! _Bitte, _prepare zhe Medical bay, somebody! Ve haff two vounded, one in critical condition-"

"Can you make it a'right!? Where's Sparky, I gotta talk to 'er, the fat man better be a'right too, or I'm gonna freakin'-"

Scout was punched in the gut firmly, and Spy was back on. "We will prepare the Infirmary as requested. Glad to see you still alive, Docteur. Let me talk to Miss Sparks."

At the other end of the line, Medic was prepared to tell him why that was a bad idea, but then there was the sound of someone _suffocating, _it seemed like. Choking harshly, gasping for breath, crying out.

* * *

"_NEIN!" _Medic screamed and threw back the hood that was covering Theodora, only to find her wide eyed with fear and coughing and wheezing uncontrollably. Heavy only stared down with the same frightened expression, glance switching between the two.

Medic yanked the girl from his grasp and yelled, "Get to zhe base! Get zhe Medigun! _Teddy, ich schwöre bei Gott, wenn Sie jetzt hier sterben…"_

Heavy obeyed without question, running as fast as his numb, aching feet would allow him. The German turned his attention back to his patient, grasping her face as she struggled for breath.

"Teddy, you need to relax, now!" he panicked, brow creased with worry. "Breathe deeply if you can. Don't let zhis take you like zhis, j-just breathe, _Liebling_."

Cold, pink finger tips once again reached for his vest, but they never made it there, falling to rest lifelessly on her chest. Try as she may, her breathing would not calm. She wasn't getting enough oxygen, and the world began to blur.

"B- ha!- Ber- ah!- Nnhar- ah!- d- uh!"

White flags were raised at both bases. Alarms blared for miles around, and the distant screech of the RED ambulance cut through the winter air.

Medic knew that she needed more warmth. But it was now a question of if she would receive it in time. Quickly, he threw open Heavy's coat and hopped inside, closing it until there was no light or outside air. All he could hear now was the gasping, panicked girl beneath him. His desperate attempt to save her involved CPR and rubbing his hands up her sides quickly, hoping the friction would get her blood flowing again.

Between each, he would take her head in his hand and look in her eyes to make sure her brain was getting enough oxygen, then resume his medical work with renewed fervor.

Five minutes in, and they were both picked up by multiple sets of hands and carried into a much warmer environment, but Medic didn't stop. Stopping now would be catastrophic. Then, the ambulance jostled again, and as soon as it started moving-

"GAAAHHH!" Theodora screamed, much needed air rushing back into her body.

"Get doc outta there!" a Texan drawl commanded. "Doc, we got the gun, you better use it quick!"

The thick coat was hastily unwrapped, blinding bright lights assaulting them both. Again, Sparky gasped, now that fresh air was hitting her full force. A faint pink had returned to her cheeks, and her lips were no longer blue, but the sudden rush of events left her light headed, and she passed out as Medic trained the gun on her and fired.

Engineer, Demoman and Soldier stared at their frozen, beaten teammates. Medic's hair was all askew, the left lens on his glasses cracked, and bruises all over his bare arms, the sleeves having been repeatedly torn for gauze and extra warmth for Sparky. As for the woman herself, there was dry, caked blood coming from her nose, and a rather large patch on her stomach. Her pale skin would put Snow White to shame at this point, and she was as cold as ice.

They all silently agreed that it was amazing she was even alive at all.

As soon as they arrived back on base, the alarms were silenced, the white flags were lowered, and Heavy and Theodora were rushed to the Infirmary at blinding speed in the now powered base.. Happy, confused and concerned shouts filled the RED base as two mercs thought to be dead ran by at full speed, and the third being carried swiftly for immediate medical attention. As much as the rest of the team wanted to bombard them with questions, they were blocked off by a locked Infirmary door and shuttered windows.

For the time being, it was enough to know they were alive.

* * *

Life had never felt so precious and fragile to the doctor than ever before as he ran his hand over Theodora's head. He'd almost lost her to something as simple as Hypothermia, it felt so wrong and unacceptable, that he was almost moved to tears that he was so happy that it wasn't true. Her skin had finally returned to a healthy shade of peach, her breathing normal and calm. Every now and then, the German would lean closer to her and hum contentedly before pecking her wherever he desired on her face, then retreat again.

Heavy stared at the two as he sat under the beam of the mounted Medigun in the Infirmary, smiling slightly to himself. He'd found them. _Alive._ Just as he'd promised himself and Spy. And they _stayed _alive. The only long term damage Theodora was going to suffer was a quite prominent scar on her abdomen, but the internal damage wasn't as severe as initially thought. That was only proven by Dorothy's happy purring, nestled snugly in the crook of her neck. The cat had gone missing during the two days Theodora had been missing, but as soon as she re-entered the base, the kitten was right behind her.

Medic's expression of satisfied bliss and longing was almost enough for Heavy to want to take him in his arms and hold him tightly, but he refrained. Medic was Theodora's now. Not his. He had no rightful position to treat him like he was still his lover. Medic seemed to sense his turmoil, and turned to look at him with warm, inviting eyes.

"Misha," Medic whispered.

The Russian glanced up from his thinking. "Da, Doktor?"

"Come here, _bitte._"

Heavy did as he was bade, swinging his legs from the table and lumbering to the doctor. When he was there, he saw that Theodora's eyes were open, and they had the same warmth that had been missing for so long.

"She says she vants you to hold her."

Blinking in surprise, Heavy asked, "Why?"

Medic chuckled. "For zhe same reason I vould vant you to hold me, _mein kuschelbar_. Go on, vhile she's still awake."

Heavy hesitated, but only for a second as Medic stared at him expectantly with the slightest grin on his face. Gently, he took the Canadian into his arms, and as soon as she was close enough, her arms wrapped eagerly around his neck. Dorothy mewled in protest at the loss of heat, but Medic soothed the kitten by taking her into his own hands.

"Mmm, warm," Teddy whispered. Her skin was still slightly cool, but quickly warmed up in his embrace. "Heavy, he was right. You're warm." The Russian grinned at her as she sighed.

"He's like our own heat generator, isn't he?" Medic asked lovingly. "Your acceptance and selflessness still amazes me, Teddy."

"_Our _heat generator, Doktor?" Heavy asked wearily, glancing up from the woman's satisfied face.

The other two looked confused at first, then Medic remembered. "Ah, ja, ve haven't told you yet, haff ve? Vell, Teddy's tired, so I'll do zhe majority of zhe explaining. Vell, ve all know by now zhat Theodora is zhe Plague Doctor, vhich meant zhat she vas zhe one vho knew of our relationship zhe whole time, und no one else. As zhe Doctor, she told me zhat she had no problem vith two members of zhe same sex being involved platonically, or sexually, or anyzhing in between. But vhat she didn't tell me vas zhat she vas also alright vith _polygamy._"

"Polygamy?" Heavy wasn't familiar with the English word. Theodora explained.

"It means to have more than one lover. It's like cheating, but _everyone's_ okay with it."

Realization hit him like Scout's bat to the head, and he almost threw Teddy out of his arms in shocked joy.

"_Доктор, мы все вместе?_"

"What did he say?" she asked.

"He vants to know if _ve _go together. As in, all zhree of us."

"Eh, not… quite," she clarified. "We both share Medic, but… not at the same time. Like, uh, shared custody, I guess."

Heavy's smile did not falter, though he knew what she meant. _He had his Doktor back._

"I love this woman!" he exclaimed, pecking both of her cheeks excitedly, then tenderly setting her down and lunging for Medic before he could react. "And I _love _this Doktor!"

It felt like the most tender kiss they'd ever shared, and Teddy could sense it as she gazed on with smiling eyes and a warm heart.

It had seemed stupid, in her mind, for them to part ways just so Medic could live normally once the Gravel Wars were over. They had who knows how long left, and the tension would be too much for all three of them to handle. She felt as though she shouldn't get in the way, and so, until they had to part ways for the final time, Heavy could enjoy his Doktor for as long as he could.


	17. Desire

The month ended. December crept in like a fog, the mercenaries unaware of the passing of time. Smooth snow laced the ground in a white, glistening powder. It was only disturbed by Dorothy's pawprints, which lead a fair distance from the base, to the middle of the battlefield, then back again in one long loop. Only the wind disturbed the top layer of snow. Only the single path of human footprints to a van some distance away disturbed the snow.

BLU was quiet. RED was quiet.

The loopholes had been closed. RED was safe. Everyone had made it through the ordeal alive. For better or for worse- that was yet to be determined in the fullness of time.

Scout and Demoman stood by Theodora as she made her way to Spy's Smoking room, in the event that she should stumble and fall. Her own feet were still unsteady, her gut swollen with a yawning ache that would take time to heal, but she was well on her way back to full health. None of them knew why Spy had summoned her to one of his most sacred areas, but no one questioned it. They were simply too exhausted and happy to care.

They were safe. RED was safe.

Spy stood at the door, waiting for her with warm, inviting eyes. As they were not invited, Demo and Scout stopped where they were, remaining only to make sure she made it _into _the room without incident.

The door clicked closed softly.

Spy took her hand like a gentleman and led her to his own seat by the fire in the room. She sat slowly, and none too gracefully, but it was better than she had a few weeks ago. He offered her wine, but she declined. After pouring some for himself, he stood with an arm on the shelf over his fireplace and stared into his glass before speaking.

"Are you sure you are comfortable talking about your… 'alter ego'?" he questioned her cautiously.

"Only to you and Medic," was the soft reply. "Ask what you will."

Silence. Then, the question.

"Why?"

"Why, what?"

"Why would you take it upon yourself to assume such a dangerous position when you could have easily cried for help and received it?" His calculating stare did not phase her like it used to. As the Plague Doctor, Teddy had seen up his cuffed sleeves many times. She knew what Spy was.

She crossed her legs and cleared her throat quietly.

"Some things are best done yourself. That's what my father taught me. Perhaps I shouldn't have taken it so seriously."

Spy chuckled.

"Indeed. But your work is done, _non?_ RED is safe, BLU has been restrained, and the Plague Docteur is no longer welcome. Our employers are not aware that you and it are one in the same. In that sense, you have been spared."

"I've been spared many more times than I care to remember. Death is chasing me, maws wide open, and it isn't long until his hounds finally catch me."

Spy's smile fell quickly.

"Then that makes two of us."

Theodora glanced up from her twitching hands at the masked man, then back to her hands again.

"Yeah. I guess it does…"

"It defines us all."

Another silence. Theodora takes a deep breath, and begins what Spy has been longing to hear.

* * *

_When my mother died, something snapped. Something pushed and pulled me into an entirely new shape and color, and no matter how I changed my thinking, I couldn't change back. Her whole life, she'd tried to solve her problems peacefully, and it had all been to no avail._

_So why reason with peace, when you can reason with war?_

_Night after night, I disguised myself into many different forms to scare the peoples who had taken my mother from me. And when they fought back, so did I._

_But I never meant to kill. The first was an accident, and when that had happened, another something snapped. I thirsted for blood. I yearned to take so many lives, that I didn't even know who I was anymore, until I realized their violence wasn't going to stop until they saw reason behind my attacks._

_I told them that the demon would stop if they stopped fighting. It had worked._

_And then, I felt empty. Purposeless. So when next given the chance to fight, I jumped at it with a whole new look._

_I was never caught. My father never suspected a thing. I grew strong from those I had changed, beaten or killed. I grew confident. I grew different from the other children, until I was something almost completely different._

_Even as myself, everyone was afraid of me._

_I grew up lonely, but I continued to don a different mask whenever the occasion arose, to protect my father and myself from harm. Using the same persona would make it easier to link back to me. I constantly changed. I learned to act. I learned to make myself scarce and act on the spur of the moment._

_And then, I started falling in love. Left and right, I would see him, but he was always with another girl, and anyone that came close to him was afraid of me._

_They always were._

_I hid my emotions from all except my father. I taught myself that I could never love, because no one would ever accept me for me. And for a while, I was content. The world around me was just right. Enough crime to keep me satiated. Enough human interaction to keep me sane._

_And then, Reliable Excavation and Demolition approached me with the job offer._

_I asked my father to help me get to America, but he refused to let me leave._

_So I left. I didn't tell him where I was going. He doesn't even know where I am._

_And here, I was happier than I had ever been. Blood splattering the walls, heads rolling, the sound of used rounds clicking on the dirt and concrete. The feel of my own bones snapping and reforming right before my very eyes._

_I let my guard down. I fell in love._

_And I felt __**alive**__._

_And with BLU doing their whole 'loophole' thing, I had more reason than ever to wear a mask. To protect my new friends. To protect the only people who accepted me for who I was._

_To protect my Medic._

* * *

Spy nodded, understanding her position at every point, relating all too well. When he realized she was finished speaking, he handed her a glass of water, which she took eagerly, and it was Spy's turn to talk.

"I am honestly surprised you would entrust me with so much personal information."

"It's not like it's hard to find out, or like I'm telling you I'm a virgin."

The Frenchman merely grinned at the reference to the trip into town back at Teufort so many months ago.

"Ah, yes, that. You and Medic had quite the little rivalry back then. It's amazing how quickly some things can change. Now, tell me; are you going to let him _claim _you?"

She visibly and audibly gulped, staring at her water wide eyed.

"Still not sure," she mumbled.

"For someone so brave and selfless, you certainly are quite the blushing virgin, Miss Sparks."

She choked, shifting uncomfortably. Spy simply waited.

"It's… different," is what she finally settled on. "I've never allowed anyone as much trust as I'm giving him, let alone even Scout, for Christ's sake. I mean, it's _Scout, _and I trust him more than my own _father._"

"But are you alright with that?"

"Yes." There was no hesitation in her reply.

"Then you are ready for intercourse with Medic. Not only is he a tender lover, but he's a _doctor. _If anyone would know how to take care of you, it'd be him."

She nodded shallowly. "Anything out of the ordinary I should be warned about, like with the heart transplant?"

He helped her to her feet, and led her to the door back out to the hall.

"From what I know from the snooping I've done, Medic is quite a vanilla lover. But if Heavy's occasional screams are anything to go off of… I could be horribly, _horribly _mistaken."

He flashed his bright teeth at her before closing his door and locking it, making the room alien to the outside world once again. Teddy stared, arms shaking, breath catching.

What could _that _mean?

* * *

She walked into her room- her room, her own room- and sighed. One bed. One bed for Sparky, and only Sparky. Her things were arranged just the way they were back at Teufort before all the trouble began with BLU, but she didn't bother to touch any of it, instead throwing herself back on her sheets and kicking off her boots unceremoniously. They clattered noisily across the room before settling on the opposite wall just three yards away.

Now that the contracts were in effect, all regulations had gone back to normal. No more fixed meal times, no more forced communal showers, and, much to everyone's relief, no more bunk buddies. Each merc had their own room once again.

At Coldfront, the rooms are much, much smaller. And colder. That's a given. And that's fine. The only one who might be struggling is Scout, who could really use the extra room. But he has his own room again, just like everyone else. He should be much better off than he was before.

Theodora peels the rest of her clothes off until she's in nothing but her undershirt and boxers. She always preferred to dress that way; ladies's underwear never appealed to her. But the room is colder than it should be. Every room in the base is kept at the same temperature, but her room feels too cold. She runs her hands over her arms and shivers.

There's a knock at her door, and Medic popped his head in.

"Teddy? May I, ah-"

"Of course," she replied.

The doctor steps in, a small grin playing at his lips. Surprisingly, he's dressed quite similarly to Sparky: in only his button down shirt and kaki pants- boots, vest, tie and coat all missing.

"Comfortable?" he asked out of common courtesy.

She nodded quickly, struggling to keep her eyes away from his broad shoulders and chest. He notices, and chuckles.

"Go ahead, it's not like your eyes vill burn up. I'm afraid zhe shirt isn't as zhick as I vould haff hoped." She looks away, red creeping into her face like the plague. Medic frowns slightly before considering that she must be nervous. She'd spent her whole life avoiding _this _in particular, and now that she could, she wasn't sure what to do. She didn't understand her own sexual drive, why Medic made her feel this way.

How to appease it. She had little to no clue.

He sits down across from her on her bed, but she backs away timidly, avoiding his gaze and tapping her thumbs together. Her blush is deep red, and she bites her lip.

"I- I didn't mean it- to- I just- uh-"

He takes her left hand and guides it to his chest, eyes half lidded, smile subtle and inviting. As soon as it makes contact with his left pectoral, her gaze darts up to her hand with unmasked shock, her lip quivering. His free hand caresses her face, even as she flinches, eyes wide like a deer.

Her whine is so high, only dogs could possibly hear it. "Bernhard…"

A finger covers her lips.

"I'm not going to hurt you, or make you do anyzhing you don't vant. But let me… _hold _you. Let me just…"

Unlike their first kiss, this one is gentle, unhurried, soft. The tenderness surprises Theodora, so much that she relaxes entirely, eyes closing and sighing deeply. He takes it a sign to continue, and kisses her again with the barest amount of more force. She responds timidly, though it's certain that she's more than alright with it from her small, short pants between kisses.

When he backs away, her face is flushed and her lips are engorged with blood. The sign of a content woman. Medic grins.

"You don't haff to sleep here if you don't vant to," he implies.

Teddy glances around, then down at her thin sheets and rough quilt. Medic brings his own bedding with him, so his bed is sure to be much softer and warmer.

"Well… ah, you _do _have a bigger bed, and its warmer, and, uh…" Her train of thought is lost when her eyes trail back down his chest, and she sees the dark brown hair sprinkled there under the thin shirt. The sudden urge to sink her nose in that hair is intoxicating and frightening at the same time.

Medic takes her chin in his hand and pulls her gaze back up to his.

"Zhink about it."

He lets her go and stands up quickly, leaving the room and Sparky to her swirling vortex of thoughts and ideas, just like Spy had only hours before.

* * *

"Well, I ain't no love expert, sweetheart," Engie shrugged, "But I'd say he's really into ya. Seemed pretty desperate to save your life, and plus, you been sharin' a room for months now. He probably feels lonely without ya."

Theodora struggled to hold back her confused and scared tears as she continued, "I just… I just don't want to be taken advantage of. It's so horrible…"

"Awe, come on now, quit the waterworks. Solly will have my hide if I dirty up this floor right after he's left," he chuckles. "Made sure it was spick and span."

With a sigh, he sits next to her and wraps his arm around her. "I remember when I had a talk like this with Scout 'bout Miss Pauling. 'Course, it was to try to dissuade him from changin' a thing 'bout himself to win her heart. He wanted to learn fuckin' French, for Chris'sakes. He was so concerned 'bout winnin' her over, he was ready to give his soul to the Devil. That right there? That's infatuation. That passes. But Medic… yeah, he wants ya to be happy, but he's not going to neglect his own wants and needs for it, unless your life depends on it. That's what I'd call love. Carin' for yerself just as well as your significant other."

Engie grinned up at her, being slightly shorter as he was, and she grinned back.

"Yeah. Guess I worry too much, huh?"

"Everyone does a little. Not get outta here, girl. Go to him, don't be shy."

Theodora pecked him on the cheek as thanks, then walked out of the room. Engineer blushed deep crimson, and writhed in his seat happily.

"So damn cute."

* * *

_OKAY, WARNING YOU IN ADVANCE IN CASE I FORGET. SEX. IS. **COMING.**_

_And school is starting soon, so everything is going to slow down considerably._

_Now that I got that out of the way... I'm working on some ask blogs for each of my original characters. So far, I have three: One for Teddy and Bernhard, one for Emma and Eddie (My Sinatra), and one for Wave and Trevor (Grand Theft Auto V: Waltz of the Outcast). They'll be on Tumblr, and I'll provide links for each when they are ready for public use. They are RP blogs, so don't be shy! Teddy and everyone else would be HAPPY to answer your questions!_

_-Dylawa_

**_Edit:_** _Hey, Sparky's blog is ready! Link is on my profile page! Go ask a question!_


	18. Passion

_... I... have... no asks?_

_*sobs quietly.*_

_Seriously, just go and say anything to Teddy's Tumblr, and I will answer it as quick as I possibly can. I wuv you, and I want to interact with you all on a more personal basis. The link to the ask is on my profile page, as I can't put in in a story. Seriously, fanfiction. Change that.  
_

* * *

His head lurches up from its position staring at his paperwork when Sparky knocks and peeks her head in. Medic splits in a grin and beckons her in with his free hand, his right still jotting notes down in a hurried hand.

"Please, please, come in!" he calls from his desk. "I'm just about done for zhe night, make yourself comfortable, _Liebling, bitte!_"

She smirks nervously and closes the door behind her. Immediately, Archimedes soars down from the rafters and onto her outstretched hand, chirping happily. Theodora ruffles the bird's feathers with two fingers, and he leans into it happily before lifting off back to the rest of his companions. Dorothy mews loudly and jumps up in an attempt to catch the flying animal, to no avail, then paces under the birds, waiting for one to come down.

Medic chuckles at the startled gasp she gives when she looks up and bumps into him. She hadn't seen him walk up to her while she was giving her attentions to the man's favorite dove. His ungloved hands find her shoulders, grasping her firmly, but not pushing her away nor pulling her closer.

"Don't be so nervous, now," he hums softly, face instantly turning serious and thoughtful. "I'm not going to try anyzhing tonight. Do you need to do anyzhing before bed?"

"Water," she mumbled hoarsely. He still had the very same effect on her as the first day she saw him, though she had hid it well behind her aggression. "A drink, I mean."

He left her side and immediately returned with a glass of water, and she thanked him and took it, but did not drink. Her insides were still fluttering wildly at the prospect of the numerous outcomes of tonight and what they may mean for her in the future.

Now Medic is concerned. He drags a stool over with his foot, placing it behind Theodora and setting her down on it.

"Theodora," he whispers soothingly, "I'm not going to hurt you. Please, tell me vhat is wrong. I'll do everyzhing in my power to fix it."

Silence that seems to stretch an eternity. Then:

"I just… I've never… slept with someone before. Not even my mother or father. It's always just been me. And then you have to go and… make me feel… I- I can't even explain it. You just have this effect on me that no one has before. And I feel complete just standing in front of you."

Gingerly, he took her hand in his and stroked it with his thumb. She couldn't look at him now, not if her life depended on it, but he cupped her face with his other hand, smiling tenderly.

"Zhat's a good sign, zhen," he smiled. "Maybe you really _do _love me as much as I love you, _Liebling. _Or, Love, I mean. Please, don't be nervous, Teddy. I'll do vhatever it takes to make you feel comfortable, or you can return to your own room. You don't haff to do zhis-"

"But I want to!" she nearly screamed, making them both jump slightly. "I- I mean, uh, oh, fuck, look, I-"

Medic's lips pressed insistently against hers, effectively quieting her panicked rant and slowing her racing heart. Their lips caressed each other lovingly, softly, and soon, their bodies were tight together, small, soft pants issuing forth from their nostrils.

She tried to follow him when he pulled away, but a single finger prevented her from doing so. Medic grinned, laughed, eyes sparkling.

"Drink your vater, _mein Liebling. _Zhen I vill play for you, hmn?"

And he was gone, stripping his shirt over his head as he walked away, and the fine curves and edges and contours of his back left her staring, licking where his lips had been and tasting his toothpaste and mouthwash.

* * *

A much calmer Sparky sat at the back of the bed while Medic strung out his perfect stringed harmony, the bow gliding effortlessly over the taut strings of the violin. Every note whispered into her ear like a secret longing, a wish, a desire to be heard, touched, felt. She received it with open heart, breathing steady, mind a string of contentment and peace. Only _his _violin could have an effect like that on her.

When the piece was finished, Medic carefully set the instrument back in its case, along with the bow and other accessories. As he was already in his sleepwear, all he had to do was crawl on the bed next to Teddy. She curled in on herself, grinning sheepishly, face blushing.

"You play so well," she whispered. "You make me want to learn to play."

"It's not zhat hard," Medic told her. "You simply lightly place zhe bow on zhe strings and push and pull. Zhe harder you push, zhe louder zhe instrument plays. But you never push too hard; it vill end up sounding like nails on a chalkboard. As for playing different notes, zhat's a bit more complicated. Perhaps I should get you somezhing cheap vith markers to start out vith."

Instantly, she waved her hands in the air frantically, "Oh, no, you don't need to do that, I can buy it, and you can te-"

"Oh, _bitte,_ it vould be my pleasure, Teddy." His grin was so broad, it looked like it was stretching his face. "I'm surprised you vould vant to learn, zhough. You already play zhe piano so vell."

"I just…" her face fell, and she clutched the sheets at her knees. "I want something to remember you by when this is all over. Something more than just a souvenir I can lose. I want to leave here knowing you taught me something that I can hold on to and pass on forever. Something that can't be broken, no matter how hard anyone tries."

Medic's smile fell too, eyes widening. It was such a simple gesture of affection, and yet it touched his core.

"I- I know it sounds corny and dumb, but my dad… he always bought me lots of stuff, but what I remember most is his smile. The fresh pine smell that radiated off of him after a day of cutting trees, and I remember the look on his face before I left… we got in a fight, and… God, he was so scared for me."

He stared at her expression of mixed emotions carefully; there was anger, fear, sadness. An undeniable dose of longing was there, too, most likely for times that had passed. This was a girl who craved understanding, as she had been missing it most of her life. It was part of the reason why she came here. She was searching for people who understood her.

Suddenly, Theodora released an awkward chuckle and ran a hand through her hair. "Awe, what am I doing, we don't need to worry about this-"

"Do you love your fazher?" Medic inquired.

She was shocked.

"Of course I do, just because I ran away doesn't mean I don't love him."

"Zhat is entirely true," he agreed. "But I am zhinking it as zhat _because _you love your fazher is zhe reason you ran avay. You feared zhat, because of your differing opinions, sticking around vould only serve to increase zhe tensions between you and taint zhe vay you see and feel about him. So you left despite his protests, no?"

Teddy had already begun to clench her jaw.

Medic apologized. "Zhat's a boundary I shouldn't haff crossed."

"No, no, I just… I feel like you hit the head on the nail, and- God, I just hate looking at it that way. I just _left._ Medic, I'm a twenty six year old woman, I needed the space."

"Twenty six?" Medic wondered. "Oh, _mein Liebling_, zhat's far too long to go vithout love. How could no one haff seen your pure beauty in all zhat time?"

"Men don't like women who can look out for themselves," she shrugged, but her tone had a hint of bitterness. "They like to feel in charge, in control, depended on. A girl like me… they don't need that, _want _that. No one does. Not even… not even my father."

That fear of rejection was well known at this point. Medic pulled her in close to him, and she wrapped her arms around his neck, trembling.

"He still loves you, Theodora. No matter vhat you choose in life, I am certain he alvays vill. It's instinctual. And you ah all he has left of your mozher. Zhat strengthens your bond tenfold. I zhink you should call him, let him know you ah safe."

Teddy reeled back with frightened doe eyes. "I- I couldn't, I just got over my guilt and-"

"Call him. Not tonight, but soon. _Bitte, _for me."

There were no arguments that could overpower doing it for Medic. For his happiness. It was a dirty move to assert himself like that, he knew, but it was the only way to make things right between Teddy and her father. It was wrong to seclude yourself from your own family, and that had to change, whether she liked it or not.

"F-fine," she stuttered. "I will."

"_Gut._" And then he pushed her to lay down on the bed with one hand, and lowered himself on top of her, grinning, eyes half lidded with tiredness and desire. That look was all it took for her breathing to speed up and her heart to damn near pound out of her chest. He didn't stop until his head was next to hers, and he brushed his nose against the skin of her ear, jaw and neck. "Now just relax. Zhis is only a preview of vhat is to come. If you are good and _listen._"

His hot breath muttered there against her bare skin was a sin in itself, it felt so good and wrong. She trembled, leaned back, eyes closed, exposing more of her neck for him to pamper.

"L-listen, huh? And what happens i-if I don't?"

All attentions stopped. Medic chuckled darkly, nuzzling in to her.

"Oh, Teddy. You don't want to know, I don't zhink. But if you're so curious… try me."

A long, breathy sigh, cut off by his lips on hers, and she moans and grasps on to him, then cries out when he grinds against her and a singular ache trails up her spine.

"A-ah you alright!?" Medic exclaims.

"Yeah, yes, it's fine," she spews out, "just still a little sore, but it's fine, please, don't-"

He sits up, her hands falling from his neck, and he lifts her undershirt up to look at the wound. With lots of Medigun treatment, the cut has healed remarkably, but the skin is still pink and tender to the touch. Anything rougher than a tight hug could reopen the knife wound.

Immediately, she smacks his hands away, hissing. But his eyes don't budge. His lip is quivering, trying to find words, but nothing comes out.

"Bernhard, don't bother. It's fine. Now please-"

"Zhis is my fault."

The rest of her words catch in her throat, and she swallows thickly. When Teddy looks at him, he's staring at it, adam's apple bobbing, fists clenched tightly by his sides. When she reaches out to touch him, Medic sighs and takes that hand in his own.

"I must pace myself," he reminds himself aloud. The small angry tears threatening to spill over are too real. "You need time to heal. If I had only _listened _to you-"

"_Don't,_" she warned. "Do _not _do that to yourself."

Their eyes connect. They both sigh wearily. Theodora says, "Look, we've both made mistakes. We don't need to focus on the details, how or where or why, we just need to know that we've made them. We need to remember we're not perfect. And that's all."

The silence is thick. She can't read his mind, but she can tell it's full of thoughts and they're getting away with him. Lightly, Theodora places her hands on his shoulders, and pulls him down on the bed next to her. When she turns over to turn out the light, Medic scooches closer until his front is flush with her back, and his arms snake around her tenderly.

"You're right. Ve can't focus on vhat ve've done vrong. But zhat von't stop me from feeling guilty about it."

"Mmm," is the only reply he gets. Of course, she's tired, and his embrace is so warm, so safe. Medic doesn't take offence to it, smiling against her neck.

"Oh, vhat a night, ja? Ve can talk more in zhe morning, I suppose."

But she's already gone, eyes long drifted shut and mind deep in sleep.

* * *

"Daniel Sparks speaking. Who is this?"

That voice. Deep, thick like honey, and at this moment, so terrifying. Teddy gulps, voice quivering. And though she tries, words can't go past her lips. Medic sees her trepidation, places a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"Hello?"

"Answer, _Liebling,_" the German whispers.

It's the only thing that spurs her to do so, the only thing preventing her from slamming the phone back on the receiver and running as fast and as far as she can from the device. Her voice croaks.

"D-dad?"

His response is immediate.

"Teddy?! Teddy, is that you!?"

She cringes, and holds the phone away from her ear as if it's trying to bite her.

"Hey, dad. Yeah. Hi-"

"Oh God, Teddy, I- wha- where have you been?! Where are you!?"

They are both silent as she pieces together her reply.

"I'm… at the job. The one with Mann Co."

"Are you-?"

"No, listen to me," she groans. "Dad, I'm fine. I'm safe, I make good money, and I'm not coming back for a while. I'm going to stick it out until my contract ends."

A panicked gasp over the line.

"N-no, Teddy, darling, I need you here with me, back home. You don't have to be-"

"You're right, I don't. But I want to be."

"No, Teddy, please come home, sweetie. Please, for me."

The nickname rings in her ears like a bad vibe. _Sweetie. _"I'm not going to come home, Dad. And there's nothing that will make me."

"Teddy…"

Theodora sniffs, and a tear runs down her cheek.

"Dad, I love you. I just wanted you to know that this is _nothing _against you, this is _all me. _I _want _this. C-can't you accept that and be happy for me? Fighting everyday is a _dream-_"

"Fighting!? Teddy, oh God, please, d-don't go, losing one of you is enough! If being happy means putting your life on the line, I can't stand by and let that happen!"

"I won't die, Dad! I _can't _die, it's not possible!"

At this point, she was stretching the truth slightly to win his favor, but in her mind, she justified the act to put his mind to ease and to make them both happy.

"Look, they got a machine that keeps you alive, and that's so they don't have to hire more mercenaries. And it _works. _I've died over a hundred times, Dad, and I'm _still here _and still _kicking_."

"Bullshit!" he screams, and she holds the phone further from her head. "Teddy-"

"Dad!"

"_Liebling!_"

Theodora takes the cord and pretends to wrap it around her neck and hang herself as her dad continues to scream at her. Medic shakes his head, hands tangled in his hair in frustration.

"Are you listening to me!?" The sound of something slamming on the other end. Teddy takes a deep breath.

"Yeah, yeah, I hear you, and I don't give a fuck, and I want you to shut up and leave me alone! I'm twenty six years old, I can make my own decisions! Dad, no, Dad, listen to me, listen very carefully. I'm not eight anymore. I wear a cup size thirty four B, I bleed out of my ass once a month, and I get hair in strange places. I'm not helpless anymore, and I refuse to let you call me back until you get that through your head!"

She moves to slam the receiver back down, but her father's words stop her.

"Wai-wait! You're right! Teddy, don't go, I just…"

Tears are streaming down her face freely now, and it's torture choking back the sobs that want to destroy her.

"Dad, I… I'm happy here. I'm happier than I've been in a really long time. Please… don't take that from me. And the best way for you to do that is to be happy for me."

"Theodora, I… ugh… Sweetie…"

The silence stretches over the vast miles that separates them.

"... Your mother… she'd know what to say. Wouldn't be screaming at you like I am. But… you know me. Loose canon."

"Don't talk about Mom," she warns him. "You know what happens when you do."

"I know. I know."

"So… what then? That's it? We're all good?"

"Just… Theodora, be safe. _Please. _I… I'd lose my mind if I lost you too. And get back here as soon as the thing's over. Promise me you'll come back."

She visibly cringes, a hand shooting up to her mouth to mask the miserable gasp that escapes her.

"I… I don't make promises anymore. I can't, I-I'm sorry-"

Medic takes the phone from her trembling hands as her father starts screaming again, and sets it tiredly on its rack. Teddy sinks into his arms and sobs openly.

"You did zhe right zhing, Theodora."

She nods against his shoulder, yelling as if it was all she needed to dig out the pain and feel alright again. Clinging to his labcoat, leaning into his chest, staining the garment with her frustration and guilt.

* * *

_I know, I sorry, you came looking for the sexy bits, I know. But I wasn't lying when I said they were coming. Either next chapter or the one after that. Like I said, I don't just dive into porn straightaway unless the relationship is already there. Teddy still has a bit of nurturing needed before she'll be ready to submit herself to Bernhard._

_Plus, dat belly gotta heal, amiright?_

_-Zhe-Ubermensch_


	19. Insanity

_Day 14; Still no asks. Author is slowly losing her mind_

_All it takes is a thought and a visit to the blog. That's like, less than two minutes. Please, humor me._

* * *

The flavor of the meat was far too strong, too juicy, too tender, and she couldn't finish it. Engineer's barbecue was her favorite, and she couldn't bring herself to finish the leg she had been served. The will just wasn't there, and Teddy poked at the chicken mindlessly.

Two days. It felt like it had been only a minute ago she'd talked to her father. Argued. Spat. Hung up on. Her stomach churned miserably.

"Yo, Sparky, you a'right?" Scout called from across the table. "You're not lookin' too hot there."

"Aye, she's lookin' like she's bound ta burn up!"

Medic didn't pitch in, afraid his interference would stir things up. There was a certain edge to her voice ever since the phone call, and it was always directed towards him. Like it was his fault her father acted so possessively. In the end, it was Pyro that lead her out of the room and into the frigid night air.

Once they were alone and out of sight, Yìyuàn peeled her mask from her head and sighed, her breath condensing in the space in front of her.

"It's your father, isn't it?"

"You heard the call?"

"My room's right next to the phone," she nodded. "I get a basic idea of what it was about, but I didn't hear him. Not possible, can't hear through the wall…"

Again, the fire lover's eyes drifted into a serene state, and Theodora had to pat her cheek to bring her back. "Sorry," she mumbled.

"Don't beat yourself up about it," Sparky grumbled back. "Look, don't worry about the phone call, please. I'm fine, I swear, and I've got a lot of other things on my mind to keep me busy-"

"Busy, but not happy," Yìyuàn interjected. "It's the happy that matters. The last thing I heard was something about promises you couldn't keep. Why? What can't you promise him?"

A bit of the intense glare that inhabited the Canadian's eye returned as she sneered at Yìyuàn. "That's none of your business, Pyro."

"It is when it affects your performance ability on the field," the Chinese woman spat back. "We can't have you drifting off because you're so worried about your dad, so put aside your sorrow and spit it out."

Bitter wind bit them both as she struggled to find the words that should have been right in front of her.

"My dad… he- he wants me to come home. But I can't."

"Why?"

"I- I don't want to."

"Not being able to and not wanting to are completely different, Sparky."

"Are you here to grammatically correct me, or help me Yìyuàn?!"

"I'm here to get you to see a point! So keep talking, Wimpy Wendy!"

Teddy pushed the suited girl into the snow. "Don't call me that! I'm twice the woman you'll ever be!"

"Then prove it!" Yìyuàn shouted back. She shot to her feet and smacked Teddy across the face harshly. The sting was only intensified by the biting wind. As the Canadian tried to get a grasp on the Chinese woman, Pyro ducked down quickly and yanked on her leg, sending her crashing on her head. When her senses came back to her, Yìyuàn was crouching over her with a rather feral look in her eyes.

"Sparky, I need you to focus. I need the Plague Doctor right now, the problem solver, the stoic bird head. I need you to _think_. You are well older than twenty, and that merits a rite of passage, one to make your own decisions. So why are you letting your father hold you back with such an iron grip? Why him, of all people?"

Yìyuàn felt as if she was burning up with the intense glare Theodora shot from under her. "If I was so trapped under my dad's rule, would I be here!? He didn't want me here in the first place, yet here I am."

"And why are you letting that decision affect you? Aren't you happy here?"

"Of course I am!"

"Then why are you so worried!? Your dad is not a potato! He can handle himself, and he need to grow up himself and let you go, whether he likes it or not! As soon as you start acting like you don't need him, he'll get the message and leave you alone."

"But I don't WANT to be left alone!" Teddy screamed and bucked the fire lover off of her, scrambling back into the wooden wall behind her. "I can't be left alone!"

Yìyuàn's eyes widened, and the other woman bit her lip, attempting to prevent herself from sobbing again. But the tears did fall, and she wiped them away with the back of her sleeve roughly.

"F-fuck, Yìyuàn. You know how it is, you defend people all your life and you see the connection they have with others. A connection I never had the chance to have before all…" she motions all around her, suggesting the current situation. The Gravel Wars.

"... _this._"

Slowly, the burnt girl gets to her feet and cautiously approaches Teddy as she rambles.

"No friends, no mom, no siblings… My Dad was all I ever had, and I can't push that away. I can't… never have… someone like him. And Medic, God, he;s so supportive, but I can't let him see me cry like that again. He'll think I'm weak, and then he won't want me anymore, and-"

"Your Dad cares too much about you, Sparky," Yìyuàn whispered, now sitting next to the blonde woman, peeling off her gloves. "No matter what, even if you say you don't want him around, he will always be here for you. Here, and here."

Her now ungloved index finger lightly taps first her own head, then her heart.

"I think you're making this way harder than it needs to be. And so is he. You're both at fault here, I've decided. This has been going on for a while?"

"My whole life," comes the quiet reply.

"You've given him too much control of your feelings. If I'd done that when my dad left us, do you think I'd be who I am today? I'm strong, I take care of myself, cut off all family ties, and this is all I know anymore. Do you think this would have been possible if I'd let that anger and frustration control me?"

"Stop…" she warned.

"Sparky, this is going to be the end of you if you let it control you. Look at what it's turned you into already! You don't fight well, and when you do, it's always against one of us! You can't go on like this! It's just like… just like when you first came here."

"It wasn't like that!" she snapped.

"It was probably part of it! Don't deny it, you know it- _I _know it!"

Sparky roared in frustration and leapt to her feet, briskly walking away. "He had _nothing _to do with it!"

"Then why are you getting so damn upset about it!?"

"Because I disappointed him! I left when he told me not to, and ever since I called him, it's all come back to haunt me! _EVERYTHING!_"

She stopped, but didn't turn back around to face Pyro. The last shout made both their ears ring, and the snow was stained with more tears, fresh and just as painful for her. Only her head whirled around, so Yìyuàn could hear her.

"Do you think I _like _playing the mysterious hero when I have to?! I _hate _it. It's only the bloodshed that makes it worthwhile. I don't protect, I kill. People just get lucky in the process, and whoop-de-fucking-do, RED got lucky. But I don't protect. Because if I protect, then I'm shaming my mother with an ability I could have used to save _her._"

Only three more steps were taken before Pyro called:

"Wouldn't she have _wanted _you to protect? Like she did?"

Sparky never replied. It never even crossed her mind to wonder how Yìyuàn knew such a personal secret about her life. That her mother was a hero before her. But the question echoed in her mind long into the night. All the team could hear from her room was the screaming, the crashing, and the cracking.

But no one could get in. Not even Medic.

* * *

For four days, she stayed in there. For three days, the others tried to convince her, force her, pester her into coming out, but it didn't happen. For two days, there was perpetual screaming and breaking sounds, but she didn't even emerge for food. By the third day, there was only the breaking. Her voice had gone hoarse.

Soldier just missed Dorothy, who had been locked in with her.

Medic refused to let it go on for any longer. He sighed, straightened his tie, tucked his glasses away, and knocked on the door. He had expected there to be no reply. But he knew she was in there. He spoke anyways.

"Zhe ozhers haff gone into town. Zhis is a good time for us to be alone, _mein Liebling_," he quipped.

The cat began to scratch at the door, meowing repeatedly. Other than that, it was the only sound. Medic cleared his throat and tried again.

"Teddy, _bitte, _come out. I feel as zhough I haff gone a month vithout you. And I don't know vhat exactly is troubling you, but I vill do everyzhing in my power to make it better. Please… please, answer me."

A minute passes. To hell with company property damage, he needs to see if she's even still alive at this point. He kicks the door while yelling and cussing in spews of German, banging into it with his shoulder, until just as it's about to break down, it flies open, and he stops centimeters short of bashing into Theodora. She shoves him into the adjacent wall, a sort of mad gleam in her eyes. They can't focus. She wreaks of cat feces and her own bodily functions, slamming her arm into his neck and pinning him there. One good look is all it takes for him to know she's been harming not only the room, but _herself _as well.

"Oh, hey, Benny," she purrs loudly, almost as if drunk. Her body is swaying precariously, Medic doesn't fight her off, only staring with wide, frightened eyes. Dorothy darts out of the room and down the empty hall. "Hey, guess what? I don't care anymore! About anything? It's GREAT?! Just, ya know, let EVERYONE burn in Hell! J-just KILL everything, kill it dead."

Her entire body skids his into the floor, and Medic yelps when his head hits the floor. Theodora is glaring around in an almost feral manner, teeth bared.

"I'm not what they want me to be. I am _not _their killing machine, I am _MY _killing machine, ya see? I don't protect, I _KILL_. Just kill it all."

"Theodora!" Medic hisses worriedly. "Theodora, calm down, _bitte_. Zhi-zhis is- you ah-"

"Alive, Bernhard," she growls back. "I'm _alive_! Don't you get it!? Huh!? _I'M _in control now! I get it! He was like that with Mom, that's why she always… Well, _I'M _in control now! Controlling, dominating _bastard… _I called him again, he was _way _less than pleased, and I just _lost _it."

The German scrambled to his feet, trembling, and began to lead Theodora to the Infirmary. She continued to ramble all the while, almost completely unaware of her current state and condition.

"I lost it, and _he _lost it, and he said, 'Don't come home, you ignorant little shit. I tried to help you, but you just spat it back in my face. You'll _never _be the woman your mother was!' I called him a dominating freak, and he hung up, and- and I just like, 'well, fine, I don't _need _your shit, old fucker, and'-"

Every hole in her mind was instantly filled with the pain, the sting, the burn of the slap she had been dealt, and then the smack of her head against the cool linoleum wall, and then the burn of hot water sprinkled down on her, and she screamed and darted away.

Teddy had been taken to the Infirmary's personal shower, thrust and locked in, still wearing her clothes. She stared all around her, wondering what the fuck just happened, holding her pink, burnt skin tenderly.

"_Gott in himmel…"_

His voice was shaking, but low, and laced with concern. Slowly, she turned around to face him, but the glass had already fogged. All there was was his blurry outline, pacing. Theodora cleared away the fogged glass with a swipe of her hand, and he was immediately on the other side, staring, tearing up.

"Teddy, I should _never _had made you call your fazher, I'm so sorry, none of zhis vould haff happened. _Gott, _vhat haff I done!? Teddy, _bitte, _come back to me, _bitte, _I- I can't handle seeing you like zhis…_Mein Gott, bitte, helfen Sie ihr._"

He was shaking.

"I let you down," she muttered,

"Teddy, no," he promised. "Never haff you let me down. But so many times, you haff frightened me to nearly losing my own mind. Ah you alright now?"

"I shouldn't have let you see me so weak…"

"Theodora, ah you alright!?"

"I failed him, and now you-"

He couldn't take it anymore, her crazed babbling was hurting them both. He charged in there, still fully clothed, pressed her against the wall and immediately invaded her mouth with his tongue, as if trying to find the secret switch that would make all the pain and insanity go away. Immediately, she responded, pushing back against him, trying to get more of him in her mouth, quaking from the hot water, tears masked by the droplets that hit them both.

"No, you… you ah… not… veak…" he ground out between kisses. "Who… came und… saved me… vhen I… vas… a ...dummkopf?"

"Me."

"Who can… go zhrough… Respawn… a million times… und still… smile at… zhe end… of zhe day?"

"M-me-"

"Who vas gutted like… an… animal… und still… soldiered… on zhrough… vind und snow?"

"I did."

Medic crushed her head with both of his hands and forced her to look at him, frowning and glaring.

"Zhat's right. Don't you _ever _say anyzhing different about yourself, do you understand? Because it's not true! You ah vone of zhe strongest people I haff ever met, almost as strong as Heavy, will-wise. Look at me und tell me you vill _never _even _zhink _of yourself as veak ever again. Promise me, _Liebling._"

Still, she was shaking in his grip, her senses finally returning to her with his confident demeanor and positive words. Her clothes clung to her uncomfortably, now soaking from the shower head, and the floor was slick under her boots. But his gaze didn't waver in the slightest, expectant of a positive reply.

"I… I- I cut off connections… with Daddy. I'm never going to see him again. Ever."

Medic said nothing. He wasn't going to let her pull him away from what he wanted to hear. And suddenly, she stood straighter, her gaze more confident than it had ever been. Her hands found his shoulders, and she bore right into his eyes with her own, voice low and steady.

"You're right. I'm not weak. I've been through too much to be weak now."

His relieved grin nearly melted her heart, but just as he was about to speak, she held a finger to his lips and continued:

"But I can't be _strong_ alone. I can take care of myself, but I'll never be _strong. _That's why I _need _you, Bernhard. I need you to _help me be strong. _Do you understand?"

He placed a chaste kiss on her lips, then laid his forehead on her own, sighing deeply.

"Of course, anyzhing, anyzhing to prevent zhis from happening ever again. Anyzhing, _mein Liebling_. Anyzhing."

In a flash, she realized her exhaustion, having not slept for four days, and became like lead in his grip. But he held her high, as if she weighed nothing, and stripped them both of their wet clothing and washed away the filth she'd lived around. She was asleep before he even switched off the water, and long after he'd laid her in his bed and left to clean her room.

* * *

_Okay, sex is coming FOR REAL this time. Next chapter. So get your popcorn ready, or get ready to skip, unless I say other wise at the very beginning. I will leave a warning there too, because I made that mistake once, and never want to ever again._

_AND __ASK BLOG. ASK BLOG. GO ASK A QUESTION. RIGHT NOW. DO IT. __**DU EET**__._

_-Zhe-Ubermensch_


	20. First Time

_Porn porn porn, porny porn porn, first time sex, eight inches, blood, porn porn porn._

_Porn._

_Yep._

_Did I mention the _**PORN?**

_-Zhe-Ubermensch_

_(This chapter IS skippable... skippable? Skippable.)_

* * *

Bernhard.

It's the first thing she smells when she wakes up. It's in the sheets, she realizes. His smell is in the sheets. The aftershave, the cologne, even the coppery scent of blood. Faint, but there mixed in with the rest of it.

It's not her bed.

Teddy shot up, then was immediately hit by the glare of the sun from the window, so she had to lie back down to get out of its glare. Only once before had she woken up in this bed, and it was still strange now. It was like Medic was surrounding her, assaulting her with the scents she knows is like an aphrodisiac.

And she is naked. Very, very naked. In his bed. In _Medic's _bed.

"Mmm… Teddy, lay back down, _bitte. _It's too early."

That's _his _voice. His morning voice. Thick, low. Seductive. A shiver runs through her when his bare hand snakes across her front and tugs her back down. The wound is healed. All that remains is a slight ache when he presses into it, but that's all.

He tugs the sheets over her shoulder, as the room is cold, and pulls her into him, sighing tiredly. Theodora gulps, trying to remember the previous night's events, but only coming up with being hot, wet, and a promise.

"_You're right. I'm not weak._"

She is _not _weak. She can handle herself.

And now, in his grip, Theodora feels stronger than ever before. She inhales and exhales deeply, and sinks warmly into his embrace, smiling to herself. "I… love you," she whispers. It's not in her nature to use those three words together, but he deserves it. After sticking by her through all her ups and downs, especially last night, he _deserves _it.

Bernhard holds her tighter, exhaling against her neck, and the barest chuckle can be heard. "_Ich liebe dich,_" he replies.

He doesn't mention the previous night, or tell her how badly she'd scared him. It wasn't necessary to bring that up at a time like this. No, that could wait. _Everything _could wait.

But when she wakes up again, he's in the bathroom next to the bedroom, humming to himself and brushing his teeth. She can't see him from her current position, but she knows he's in there. There's steam coming out, and she knows he's had another shower.

She hadn't paid attention to his nude body last night, being too exhausted to hardly bat an eye, and her face warmed considerably at the thought. Medic, hair plastered to his forehead in wet clumps, droplets streaming down his prominent nose and shoulders. The curvature of his back, and last, but not least-

"Oh, you're avake."

Teddy jumps, and snatches the covers at her waist, holding them to her chest to hide her breasts. Medic is in the door, towel wrapped around his waist, hair still wet.

"Oh, God, uh, yeah, I just, you weren't there, and I… uh…"

Her words fall back down her throat when she gazes at his chest, still glistening slightly with water. It's also the first time she notices his faint six pack hiding under the thick layer of skin, barely peeking out, tempting her. She clutches the sheets tighter around her, and her pulse is throbbing in her neck. "Um…"

"Is somezhing vrong? Medic asks, but his lecherous grin betrays his curiosity.

His thumbs hook into the fabric hiding his lower half and rest there, dragging it down until Teddy can see the prominent "V" curve of his hips going somewhere more… _naughty._ The blush in her cheeks creeps higher, and her forehead and cheekbones are very pink.

"I- I dunno," she stutters after three seconds. "I- I think your towel is a bit low."

Bernhard feigns confusion, glancing down, and letting the towel slip lower, until the very beginning of his shaft is visible. "Really? Vell, zhis is as low as I alvays haff it. I don't see any problem? Perhaps you should come over und… _show me _just how high it _should _be."

Sparky's mouth hangs open as she timidly gets out of the bed, taking the top sheets with her to hide her own body from his stare. Thankfully, Medic doesn't object, only smiling invitingly as she edges closer to him. When she's within elbow's reach, she glances up at him curiously, wondering where he wants this to go. He gives her no indication, still smiling.

Theodora hooks the sheet under her armpits to hold it in place while her hands find his chest, and press firmly into his pectorals. Medic presses back against her, grin falling slightly as his mind gives way for a little lust to take hold. Slowly, she allows herself to slide down the expanse of his abdomen, tracing each ab with thin fingers, until finally- _finally- _she grazes the top of the towel.

Medic shudders. She shudders. And she yanks the white fabric off.

Five inches, she estimates. And he's not even _half _hard yet. She moans softly at the sight, and he tears the sheet from her and drags her into him.

It's like the first time they kissed in the cave all over again. There's no hesitation, no chastity, only fueled lust by the mere sight and presence of one another. One of his large hands cradle her head while the other presses into the small of her back, bringing their abdomens and pelvises flush together. Their tongues dance in their mouths, and they part only for breath before he lifts her. Her knees wrap around his waist, and they come back together more urgent and needy than before.

When his lips trace her ear, jaw and neck, Teddy moans again, and clings to his bare back with her nails. She whimpers high in her throat when he nibbles her ear, and gasps when his lower hand squeezes her ass.

"Ah, Bernhard!" she breathes. "I- I want- I ne- want to-"

"Tell me vhat you vant." he whispers in her ear. It vibrates her core, and she is undone.

"Ah, p-_bi-bitte_, t-take me."

Her back hits the sheets of the bed, and Medic is leaning over her, pupils thick and dark.

"_Anspruch mich._ Say it. _Anspruch mich._ Say it, und I vill take you."

She doesn't bother to ask what the German words mean, only feeling a familiar heat in her gut that is only building, only growing like a wildfire, and it _needs _to be put out soon, very soon, or she's going to lose it.

"_Anspruch mich," _she whispers. She butchers the pronunciation, and it's so quiet, even _she _hardly heard it, but Medic wants it too badly to correct her or get her to do it again. His growing erection presses into her stomach as he drops on top of her and again smothers her with his lascivious mouthing. She reciprocates to the best of her ability, but Teddy's not experienced with this type of physical contact. Even now, she trembles slightly under Medic's form. But eventually, Medic pulls away to memorize his work so far on the woman below him, lips swollen, eyes dark and lidded. There are no more grins and reassuring smiles, only lust.

Bernhard begins to palm her breasts with his hands, then pinches her nipples, drinking in the startled gasps and panting he issues forth from her parted lips. The harder he pinches, the more she moans out, and every one sounds far from pain.

"Zhis is your first time, ja?" he questions quietly. Sparky can only nod, panting too harshly to form even the sound of an affirmation. When he takes his hands off of her and places them to either side of her head, she whimpers, craving the attentions she was receiving before, but he silences her with a long kiss.

"It vill hurt some. Zhere's nozhing to stop zhat but proper preparation."

"I- I know."

"Und I von't leave you vanting. You've touched yourself at least?" Medic licks the pulse in her neck hungrily, as if trying to taste the blood coursing through her veins.

"Mmmhmm, yes."

"_Gut. _At least you haff _some _idea of vhat to expect."

He trails lower down her body, leaving a slick trail in his wake as he licks down the expanse of her exposed flesh. Her nether region is unshaven, but he finds that he hardly minds; the fresh scent that lingers from the night before is still there, and a single finger traces her bikini line teasingly.

"D-don't stare," Theodora stutters and glances away, blushing.

"Vhy not? You haff nozhing to be ashamed of here, _Kätzchen_."

_Kätzchen. _That's a new one. But the thought is drowned by his lips again suddenly returning to hers, but his hand is still down at her crotch, touches still light and lacking. The other is under her upper back, supporting her and bringing her close to him as he lays by her side.

The first touch is directed right on her clitoris, and Teddy stops breathing for a fraction of a second, legs twitching at the contact.

"G-gahh…"

"Mmm? Und how did _zhat _feel? _Vunderbar_?"

Medic's breath is right next to her ear, and it's hotter than it's ever been, spreading the heat in her face particularly on her right side as his right hand continues to lazily stroke her. She can only whine incoherently for more, and he obliges with a quick kiss to her ear and more movement in his hand. Soon, he places her body on top of his, flushed cock peeking from between her legs as he continues his attentions from her place on him.

Now that he's hard and aching, Theodora can't resist not looking at him. Eight inches, easily. Maybe seven and a half. The mere size and bead of precum at the tip are enough to have her shaking a bit as trepidation fills her system. He kisses her comfortingly on her neck, and then his fingers venture lower, until they are prodding at her entrance.

"A-aah, s-stop…" The request is hesitant and barely audible, but he hears and hesitates.

"Is zhat vhat you really vant, _Liebling_?"

She shakes harder, but just as he begins to pull away, one hand clutches at his wrist nervously. "No!" Teddy hoarsely whimpers. "I- just- just go slow."

Medic knows very well that the first time with another is always the most difficult. He'd been there once- twice before; once with a woman, once with a man, and each time brought a fresh wave of uncertainty and fear. He kisses her neck again, exhaling against it, and just that seems to relax her. Then, slowly, he slips two fingers in, her natural juices easing the way.

She's writhing uncomfortably, only a slight twinge of pain, but it's there, and she grimaces once he's in to the knuckles. Experimentally, he wriggles his fingers, and the result has Teddy clenching her thighs around his hand, but he doesn't protest.

"Alright?"

A shallow nod is his only reply. He does it again, and this time, a breathy sigh shudders out of her, and her hips tremble.

"A-again!"

It's her G-spot, he realizes. He's found it, and the pleasure is immense, surging the fires within them both a little higher. He curls his fingers, and she nearly screams with the sparks that explode in her head. Medic doesn't stop this time, curling and pistoning his fingers in and out of her, until she's biting her knuckles and clutching at the sheets beneath them both. When she feels properly lubricated, he adds a third finger, and she yanks her head back and howls.

"H-h-hu-hurts! Hurts! M-mo-ore! Please, more! Sh-shit!"

He pulls his fingers out, eliciting a whine from deep in her throat, but he lifts her off of him back onto the bed and grunts, "Need lube, condom…"

Bernhard fiddles quickly in the nightstand next to the bed and fishes out the items mentioned, slipping on the condom and lubing her and himself up, then placing one of the pillows on the bed under her hips. As he lines himself up with her, she whimpers, clutching his arms and staring between their legs.

"G-go slow Bernhard."

"Of course, _Liebling_. Hold on to me."

After hooking her legs over his shoulders, he grasps his cock, preparing for the tight entry. He's done all he can in that prospect, but now must be cautious not to hit her cervix wall. The tip plays with the tight, wet skin, then he allows the tip of the head to enter.

It stings quite a bit, but it could have been much worse Theodora knows. The pillow supporting her and her legs on his shoulders are probably helping as well, but she can't be certain unless he tells her otherwise. He _is _the doctor, after all. Well, not legally, but he knows what he's doing. Hopefully.

"_Scheiße,_" Medic groans, draining all of his willpower to not just pound into that tight, hot space, rather slowly edging into her, memorizing every groan and gasp, until he's sheathed to the hilt, and there are hot tears threatening to spill down her eyes. He kisses them away tenderly, not budging an inch while she adjusts to the foreign feeling of something inside of her. However, whether she's trying to or not, her walls are clenching around him as they try to adjust, and it's so hot and good, it's so hard not to just take her like an animal.

It feels like an eternity for them both, when it was only three minutes, for her to accept him and relax fully. By that time, he's wrenched a hand away to run through his hair and slick away some sweat.

"I… I think I… I'm ready."

His eyes open, and her eyes open, and their gazes lock, and the sight of one another flushed and panting at the other's touch is ingrained on their brains forever. Again, Medic plants his hands at either side of her body, and moves, thrusts light and shallow, making sure to graze only where he knows he won't hurt her. In the meantime, he grasps her right ankle and licks the ankle and down the calf, causing her to twitch and jerk in delicious ways.

The first command catches him by surprise; he hadn't planned for her to be so eager so quickly. But still, she whispers, "H-harder," at the top of her throat, so quiet, almost as soft as a pup's whimper. Willingly, Medic obliges, increasing the area of his thrusting as well as the pace. But when one of her hands claw at his arm by her side, he can't mask the surprised gasp that escapes him.

"Not enough. _Harder_."

He obeys, but still, the flush is leaving her face, and her breathing is evening out, but her glare is _demanding _more.

"_Harder, _Bernhard!"

Medic groans openly and complies readily, faster and deeper, each inch caressing him sinfully even with the plastic wrapped around him. Theodora takes her legs from his shoulders and drops them around his hips, crossing them and drawing him in closer, until his nose is brushing hers and their hot pants are colliding in the small space left between. Quickly, he shoves another pillow under her hips, changing the angle, and _everything _changes.

Theodora throws her head back and _screams, _and the flush immediately returns to her cheeks. She begins to buck her hips in tandem with his thrusts, making him meet her _in that spot _every time he presses in, and they both pant loudly as the feeling overwhelms them. Her hands claw down his back as her legs flail in the air, and a single trail of saliva falls from the corner of her lip.

"HARDER! Harder, _**please!**_"

The doctor would be insane to tell her no at this point, though in the corner of his mind, he's afraid of hurting her still. But one more clench around his cock devolves him of all his reason, and he growls as he lets go, pounding into her, the smacking of their hips echoing in the small bedroom.

"_Sie wollen, oder?_" Medic taunts in her ear in his foreign language. "_Rechte, _Sparks_? Nun, Sie bekommen es! Holen Sie es direkt in Ihr enge Muschi! Oh mein Gott!_"

The hiss in his voice doubled with the expression on his face and the vigorous abuse of her insides set off the climb to her orgasm. She can't even verbally warn him it comes so fast, all she can manage is to dig her nails into his back and cry out with every thrust, until she comes with a strangled shout, clenching hard around his cock and milking him with her juices. Medic isn't far behind, gasping, _tripling _his pace to an almost inhuman speed, and giving the same cry as Teddy when he stills. His hips twitch with his release, jaw slack and eyes squeezed shut, both lovers trembling with every aftershock, until he collapses on top of her, still careful not to crush her with his weight.

For two minutes, they remain in that state, shuddering and clutching to each other like a lifeline, until his cock his soft enough to pull out of her without any pain. Medic clicks distastefully and sympathetically at the blood on the sheets and on her pussy, taking a tissue from the nightstand and cleaning her off, then tying off the condom and placing them both in the trash. He cradles her in his lap as he peels off the stained purple sheets and replaces them with fresh, crisp, white ones. After they're nestled back in bed, he kisses her nose lightly. She stares back with tired eyes.

"Any pain?" he asks.

"Sore," she whispers. "But it's a good sore."

Medic grins softly and tugs her into him, arms wrapped around her waist, her hands curled on his chest.

"It vas _gut_?"

"Yeah. Really… yeah."

Her tension was dissolved in his warm embrace and the love-making they had done before. They wouldn't have to get up for another hour at least, so they had the time to snuggle and, if she was up for it, give it another quick go. But for now, they were both content to simply hold each other and rest.


	21. Invitation

The morning routine of getting dressed and brushing their teeth was intimate, yet silent as well, and they knew they didn't have the gooshy, stilted attitude of two lovers who relied on sex for their compassion. After the morning romp, it was quite clear that Medic still very clearly wanted her, and Theodora was relieved. He helped her into her coat like a gentleman, as if it was made of fine silk, but she was clumsy thrusting her arms into the holes, and then it hit home that the reason she did not want to be treated like a woman was because she never HAD been before. She didn't know what to expect.

Bernhard knew not to push. If she wanted to learn, then he would teach her, but she hadn't made any indication of desiring to learn.

In the rec room of the base, they heard a collective groan before Scout continued blabbering. Most likely another one of his bullshit encounters with dangerous criminals or seducing cougars. But when they entered the room, all eyes were trained on them, lastly Scout, and his face split into an insidious grin.

"Oh, hey! There they ah, the stahs of the night! Doc and Sparky, our source of amusement, and our boners!"

"Vhat!?" Medic exclaimed.

"Uh…" Teddy stuttered.

"Yeah, we heard you two freakin' teenagers when we were walkin' down the hall, and you were LOUD! I mean, come on, over and over, *smack smack smack* 'Oh, Medic, harder!' 'Ja, ja!' Sheesh! At least it was in the mornin' so we actually got some sleep!"

Sparky's eye twitched angrily as Scout rambled about how he and Pyro had stumbled upon some of the sounds of the morning's session with Medic. With the rest of the team present as well, it didn't make the urge to smack him any easier. Thankfully, no one was paying much attention. Someone _did _mumble '_About time,_' and a few nodded their heads in agreement, which made her grin, but Scout wiped it right off her face with more pestering.

"I mean, you sounded like a _slut _in there, Sparky, all moany an' shit, if it weren't for Miss Paulin' I'd 'ave gotten a stiffy right there, but I gotta be loyal, I ain't gonna fuck around-"

"Croikey, for the love of God-"

"-Shut the front door, Scout!-"

"This really is none of your business, _servant-_"

"COVERT SPYING IS NOT PERMITTED ON _**MY **_BATTLEFIELDS!"

Medic shoved the Bostan back angrily and hissed, "Keep to yourself, you hormonal child! Our business is none of your concern, especially if it in no way harms you!"

"It IS gonna harm all of us if you keep bangin' like that every night! I mean, come on, it's gonna affect our work performance, our sleeping hours, our relationships with each othah-"

Heavy had had enough. He smacked him down with his fist, his head rebounding noisily against the floor before he lay still. Most of the others just laughed. But Pyro and Spy went to check on him as he stormed out of the room. Medic glared around, then turned to follow, quickly vanishing from sight. Teddy only grinned and stared down at the moaning Bostan, arms folded victoriously.

As Scout came back to his senses, Spy chuckled and commented, "The first day she came here, she DID say to mind your own business, boy."

"Go to Hell, Spy."

"No, YOU go to Hell, Scout. Your dad's probably waiting there for you. If he'd had any sense, he would have stuck around and raised you right," she bitterly spat. Scout glared back with an equal amount of hatred and anger, upset that she'd brought his father into this. And then her gaze fixed on Spy, and her heart dropped.

The look of horror and hurt could make Soldier soften up. His eyes were wide like a doe, moist, jaw dropped only for a moment. Then, his mouth was set in a hard line, his brow furrowed. Quickly, he wiped his eyes with the back of his gloved hand, and in a surprisingly steady voice commanded, "I think you should leave before this fight gets any worse."

Immediately, she wanted to apologize, tell him she had no idea, that she was out of place to say something so wrong in her blinded rage, but her voice would not work. So she turned and left.

Spy probably wouldn't have wanted the extra attention anyways.

* * *

"Do not think you were harsh enough on leetle Scout," Heavy commented later that day to Theodora.

She shrugged nonchalantly as she stroked Dorothy's fur as the kitten sat on her lap. "I was there once, when the thought of someone else having sex in the same building as me irked me out. But I'm over it now. I have been for a long time."

The giant Russian took a seat next to her on the roof of the base, smiling gently to himself. "Da, this I know. Very tolerant woman, is credit to team. Credit to Doktor. Is very lucky to have you-"

"_Us, _Heavy," she emphasised. "He's very lucky to have _us, _as we are to have him."

Heavy nodded. Medic emerged from the door to the roof in a thick fur coat, still fuming to himself.

"_Das kleine Scheiße Scout hat uns falsch zum letzten Mal getan , ich schwöre zu-_ oh, Misha, Teddy, vhat are you doing up here?"

"Just relaxing away from everyone else," the Canadian cooly replied. "I've already had enough of their nonsense for the day. What are _you _doing up here?"

Medic straightened his tie through his thick gloves and cleared his throat.

"Vell, it's a bit, ah, unusual, but Mr. Hale, along vith Blutarch und Redmond, has invited zhe BLU and RED team to a formal dance as a, a sort of 'apology'. It screams disaster, but Redmond has included zhat ve'll be fired if ve refuse."

"A dance?" Sparky looked horrified. "Ha! I- I can't dance, I've never danced!" She almost toppled off of the roof in her terror at the thought, but Heavy caught her by her ankle with one massive paw-hand, and dragged her back up. None of them were shaken by her near fatal accident, thanks to Respawn's safe embrace.

"Doktor can dance vith you!" he exclaimed cheerily. "Doktor is great dancer! Flies over floor like pretty birdie!"

Theodora scoffs hopelessly. "Yeah, Misha, he's a dove, and I'm a turkey. I don't fly."

The next moment, her cry of alarm was muffled by Medic's warm mouth on her lips, and when they part, her feet are on his and he has her right hand in his left and her left on his bicep. Heavy grins and sets a tune and beat, clapping and stomping and singing as she's dragged into a foxtrot.

"_Come fly with me, let's fly, let's fly away_

_If you can use some exotic booze_

_There's a bar in far Bombay_

_Come fly with me, let's fly, let's fly away._"

"Medic! Put me down!" she protests loudly as he spins her around his hip, but she's grinning all the while. Heavy laughs at the sight and continues his serenade.

"_Come fly with me, let's float down to Peru_

_In llama land there's a one-man band_

_And he'll toot his flute for you_

_Come fly with me, let's take off in the blue_."

She can't contain her laughter at this point, which was the doctor's intention, and he grins back at her with sparkling grey-blue eyes. Heavy's description was quite accurate; They do look like birds soaring along the rooftop, their coats branching out like wings and swirling in a white and dark brown vortex around their feet.

"_Weather-wise it's such a lovely day_

_You just say the words and we'll beat the birds_

_Down to Acapulco Bay_

_It's perfect for a flying honeymoon, they say_

_Come fly with me, let's fly, let's fly_

_Pack up, let's fly away!_"

They end the dance in a rather clumsy bow, and Teddy yanks playfully on his lab coat to send them both falling on the roof. All three bellow with mirth at their antics, and Heavy picks them both off the ground with a tight bear hug.

"We go to dance and have fun, and eat lots of delicious food that is not bear meat, da?"

"Da," the two in his arms reply, and the laughter echoes along the snowy land for miles.

* * *

A month later, in his smoking room, Spy contemplates the letter curiously. What could have sparked this? Surely, Blutarch wasn't truly sorry for his mercenaries' actions. If anything, he would have praised them. But then again, why come to a compromise in the first place? For being as brilliant as they were, sometimes the Mann brothers could be quite dumb. He tsked, and tossed the paper into the fire.

He reached for his wine glass, but a soft, hesitant knock at his door stopped him.

"No, Scout, I will not do your tie. Fuck off."

"... It's, uh, it's Sparky."

The Frenchman jumped out of his seat instantly, the book that was in his lap clattering to the carpeted floor.

"Miss Sparks, you may enter."

The door creaked open slowly, and she stepped in timidly. Spy glanced over her with a quick observative eye.

"Medic picked that dress?"

The tight crimson garment hugged her waist generously, while much fabric at the neck was loose to drape over her chest and compliment her breast size. The skirt split at her left thigh and ended just above her ankle. She had no shoes, and her hair was down around her shoulders. Spy could still recall just how short it'd been when she'd first arrived on base.

"Oh, no, actually, Miss Pauling gave it to me. Just a small detraction from my paycheck." She spun around so her back was to him. "But, ah, it's just a bit too small. I can't get the zipper up on my own, and Medic's busy, so I was wondering..?

His form advanced upon her quickly, and the zipper was up in seconds, but he didn't retreat. Rather, he slid his hands over her arms and leaned in to her ear.

"It's not my fault, Theodora."

She wasn't surprised that he knew her name. But the raw emotion in his voice that threatened to overpower him did. The entire time she'd been in the room, she hadn't made eye contact, but now, she wrenched herself from his grasp and turned her head back to look at him.

"I shouldn't have said anything. I don't know why that hit a wrong chord with you, but that doesn't change the fact that I shouldn't have said what I did to Scout. I don't know if it has something to do with you being with BLU Scout's mom-"

"Please, _petite, _I understand." His voice was soft, but sounded broken. "I know you are sorry. But I didn't need your apology. I needed you to know that it _wasn't my fault._"

Theodora didn't understand. Spy sensed this, and sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose tiredly.

"Had it been my choice… I... I would have- I had to keep them safe."

Then, it clicked.

"From you," she whispered.

"Let me fix your hair, Miss Sparks," the Spy offered hasitly, before the conversation could get too deep. "Something tells me you do not do your own." He spoke not another word as he led her into his personal bathroom- built from his own paycheck- and closed the door behind him.

* * *

Even when in his formal wear, Engineer had to have his guitar with him. He sat at the edge of Sniper's van, plucking at the strings idly as he tuned it. One by one, the nine other mercenaries emerged from the RED fort, holding up their pant legs to keep them out of the snow and mud, Theodora being the exception, donning thick winter boots and carrying black flats in her hand. A sparkling opal necklace crowned her neck, and her hair was set in a tight, high bun. Engie whistled appreciatively.

"Well now, don't you look like a diamond in the coal?" he crooned, taking her hand and helping her into the Ambulance. She smiled down at the shorter man.

"You might want to watch that suit," she warned. "Doc's bringing Socrates with."

His grin dropped, and he barked out a harsh laugh.

"It's a bird, there ain't no stoppin a bird when it wants to shit on somethin'."

After a few minutes, Medic and Heavy emerged, being the last to come out, and Medic hopped into the driver's seat. Heavy climbed into the back along with Engineer, Soldier and Scout, and they were off. They had the driver's cabin to themselves, and were very thankful for silence was there, but it didn't last long.

"I am concerned about how zhis 'party' vill play out vith both teams being present. Und undoubtedly zhe BLU Medic vill vant to haff a vord vith you, _K__ä__tzchen_."

"What does _K__ä__tzchen _even mean?" she asked wearily.

Medic chuckled, eyes shutting for a brief moment as he recalled the first time he'd used the name. "I feel so close to you, sometimes I forget you do not speak _Deutsch_. It means 'kitten,' _liebling_. You vere so innocent und scared, it just slipped past my lips in zhe moment."

In a way, she was offended by the nickname. The connotation to her was that it applied a certain weakness to her, despite her independence and strength. It was exactly what she didn't want a man to see in her. But she knew it was just a nickname, and nothing more. He didn't mean she was weak.

"Cute," she grinned to herself.


	22. Blutarch

_**More asks, pls**. And if you don't have an ask, just spread the word about the blog and story to other TF2 fans. Maybe _they'll _have some asks. :D_

_-Zhe-Ubermensch_

* * *

Someone by the name of Bidwell was there to greet them, hands folded neatly behind his back. He shook every merc's hand as they passed by him, and smiled warmly to Sparky.

"So, this is the troublemaker Mr. Hale has told me all about? The incognito hippie crusher?"

She was stunned silent for a moment, before she managed to stutter, "Is… Is that what he's calling me? W-wait, he knows I'm the-"

"Everyone does," Bidwell confirmed. "Luckily for you, Redmond and Blutarch have allowed it to slide so long as you never do it again on their potential territory."

"Oh, thank fuck," she sighs hastily, placing a hand to her pounding heart. "Normally, I wouldn't give a fuck, but I just love this job so much. It's exactly what I wanted in life."

Bidwell chuckled, and motioned the woman inside, Medic behind her.

The exterior of the building was simple enough; just a three story mansion Saxton used in Utah for parties and kangaroo boxing matches. The paint was difficult to tell in the evening light, but it was quite obviously a light yellow, almost cream in color, and the roof and window shutters were a light blue. To even the color distribution, the flower beds consisted of only red and purple flowers. Overall, both teams are content with the set up, satisfied that Saxton doesn't favor one color over the other. Really, it was the Mann brothers who would have been the most upset.

Inside, the main floor consisted of a simple large ballroom with a wooden floor, and there were tables and chairs scattered along the sides of the floor. BLU team was already there, seated in the far left corner of the room, and there were other Mann co. workers scattered about, chatting. There were even some females present, but they seemed bored, as if they didn't really want to attend, but it was company policy, so they had no choice. A few, however, would occasionally glance at mercs from both teams and blush, sheepish grins playing at their glossy lips.

Medic looped his arm through Teddy's as they entered, and any woman who saw them smiled at first, but scoffed and turned their heads away when they surmised that they were a couple.

"Zhe last time I vent to a party like zhis," Medic whispered to her, "I couldn't hear zhe end of it. So many vanted to bed me, a simple one night stand. Zhat's not how I function."

She nodded knowingly, gazing about the room with wide eyes. It was so… _big_. And maybe it was just her imagination, but the chandeliers didn't look very stable.

The mercenaries scattered around the room to mingle with the Mann co. employees, trying their best to stay away from the BLUs. However, the RED Demoman briskly met up with the BLU Soldier, and they immediately began chatting like old friends. Theodora was baffled, but sensed that it wasn't a subject she should press about.

Miss Pauling walked up to them briskly, grinning from ear to ear.

"And you guys said you could never get along?" she teased.

"Oh, shut it," Medic chuckled playfully. "It vas all just a misunderstanding."

"Uh huh, sure it was, Dr. Humboldt." she laughed back.

After a half hour of mingling and chatting with others, everyone was seated by the Administrator, Miss Pauling by her side. The two women took a seat, but then for a while, nothing happened. Then there was fanfare, and Saxton came barreling out of a secret chute near the ceiling right into his own spot at a large, custom made table at the end of the room. As always, he wore no shirt, proudly displaying his country right on his chest, but he _did _at least put on some nice black slacks, and had no hat, instead having his hair neatly combed back. After his grand entrance, he spread his arms wide and called, "Welcome, employees of Mann co., RED, and BLU!"

Some people clapped politely. Miss Pauling seemed horrified by the lack of formality the Australian was showing, and the Administrator merely rolled her eyes, popping out a cigarette. The BLU Spy seemed entranced by the purple-clad woman, Teddy noticed. Then she saw the BLU Medic, glaring at her, arms folded tightly across his chest. He was dressed so similarly to Bernhard, that the only difference was his physical features (which were very slight) and his blue tie. Had their backs been to her, she would not be able to discern one from the other.

"Yes, yes, welcome all," Saxton Hale continued, suddenly seeming bored. "Now, it is my, uh, 'pleasure', to formally introduce your superiors, the Mann brothers." He clapped half heartedly as the two brothers were pushed out in their wheelchairs at the same time. Portable life- extending devices were brought out with them, and as soon as they laid eyes on each other, they scowled bitterly and made obscene gestures.

Theodora, having never before seen the Mann brothers, was, to say the least, surprised. She knew they were older than humanly possible, but for how old they were, they didn't look too bad. If she had to guess on sight, she would say they were no older than eighty or ninety. Still, despite their age, they acted like children in front of each other, sticking out their tongues, reaching to hit each other, but Saxton was placed strategically between them to prevent any physical fights from breaking out.

"Engineer und I haff yet to discover zhe science behind zhose miraculous machines," Medic mused to her. "Even still, ve only know how to _repair_ Respawn, not how it _vorks_. His grandfazher vas a genius for his time."

"I bet he was," she replied. "I can't even begin to comprehend the machine's mechanics."

"Greetings, imbici- er, I mean, _valued _employees of RED-" cried Redmond.

"Good evening, BLU sla- uh, _mercenaries_," interrupted Blutarch.

"Excuse, me, _brother, _but I was speaking first," growled Redmond.

"Oh, tough," Blutarch scoffed. "Yes, yes, welcome one and all, including my brothers _toys_. Yes, welcome-"

"And _thank _you, Saxton, for taking time out of your so _very _busy, barbaric schedule," Redmond continued, "to set up this simple extravaganza. But we all know why we _really _prepared this little get-together."

The last three words were drawn out, reluctant, and at the moment he said them, Blutarch smirked. "You all know, yes?"

Everyone present was silent, glancing around nervously. The entire BLU team was smirking, as if they were in on a secret no one else was. The BLU Medic stared daggers into Theodora, and she gulped.

"No?" Blutarch feigned surprise, Redmond rubbed his brow bitterly. "Well, then, allow us to enlighten you. Will Miss Theodora Sparks please step forward?"

All eyes, in a mix of horror, wonder and curiosity, turned towards the woman. She tried to shrink back in on herself, feeling more exposed than she'd ever been before. Medic cleared his throat anxiously, and spoke up.

"Und vhat vould be zhe purpose of zhat, may I ask?"

"I wasn't addressing you, RED drone," Blutarch hissed. "Have the woman up front now."

The way his hand tightened indicated his displeasure at being bossed about in such a manner. Nevertheless, Bernhard placed a reassuring hand on her back, gently nudging her forward.

"Zhey can't hurt you here," he promised. "I'll be right here."

"Come on, Sparks," Redmond suddenly barked. "We haven't all evening."

Her heart was in her throat. Slowly, but surely, she made her way to the center of the room, hands clasped behind her back, because if they weren't otherwise, she'd be shaking. It wasn't her domain, to be the center of attention, and she was so, so frightened.

"Closer," Blutarch crooned. "At least four steps, dear. Right there. That will do nicely."

The brother's voices were the only sound in the room. Every other figure was stock still, even Saxton.

"What is it?" Sparky asked. Her volume, thankfully, didn't betray her trepidation.

"Very forward, aren't you, Miss Sparks?" Redmond chuckled. "As much as I hate my brother and want him to die, he deserves a little more respect. Try again."

"What do you want… Mr. Mann?"

"Ach! Mr. Mann was my father!" Blutarch coughed. "I will grace you the formality of calling me that, to rather settle with my title, Blutarch. But I digress! I have called you to the eyes of everyone present here to expose you and your deviant acts!"

_Deviant acts. _The two words reverberated in her and Medic's cores. Was he going to talk about what they thought he was? How had he gotten evidence on their relationship!?

Luckily, it had nothing to do with that. It was focused on the Plague Doctor. He threw down the mask which had not been returned to her ever since the BLU mercenaries had taken her captive a little more than two months ago, and one glass eye shattered as it hit the ground. She did her best not to flinch, but her nerves were rattled.

"This was an insult to my tactics, Miss Sparks, and I don't not highly appreciate being laughed at in such an oddball manner," Blutarch began.

"I wasn't laughing at you, sir," she interjected, "I was protecting my fellow team members from your mercenaries' attacks. I was in no way laughing at you."

"Oh, really?" he crooned. He lifted a remote with great difficulty and aimed it at a large tv in the room, which had emerged from the wall, and flipped a switch. The footage was of her and Medic being held captive by the BLU team.

"_You… You're the cause of all our troubles!?_" The BLU Medic's voice was grating on their ears due to gratuitous amounts of static. Several audience members gasped when she was yanked back by her hair. "_You swine! Vhat do you haff to say for yourself!?_".

The RED Medic muffled past his gag, but the audio quality was too low to distinguish what he had said. An intense, bitter hatred possessed her glare, and Theodora stared right into the camera. Her present self did the same.

"_I… I have done this all my life,_" the video feed crackled. "_From the moment my mother perished, I disguised myself to do good will without hurting the ones I love. Of all the times I have had to don a different mask, put on a different voice, or use a different method of of attack, BLU was, by far, the __**most boring challenge**_ _I have had to face._"

Half the audience panicked when her head cracked against the metal floor, murmuring worriedly, and the panic only rose in volume when the video went to Hell.

"_Teddy!_"

"_Turn off zhe transmission!_"

The TV was switched off, and receded back into its hiding place in the wall. Blutarch tapped his fingers together, obviously agitated.

"_The most boring challenge I have had to face,_" he echoed. "That sounds to me like you're mocking me and my mercenaries, Miss Sparks."

"It was an unfounded insult, Blutarch," she replied. "It was only to anger, not to be true. BLU has many positive qualities. They're organized, well trained, and know how to stick to a plan. RED is the opposite; we improvise often, our base is in constant disarray, and we hardly ever get along."

"Ha!" Blutarch cackled, pointing at Redmond as he did so. "Sucker! Your boys _suck!_"

"That's _not _what I was implying, and I'm not finished," Theodora cut back in. "RED has been successfully pushing BLU back for the past three months, to a point where we are almost back to our stalemate that has been plaguing Mann co. for so long. Therefore, it's clear that RED does not, in fact, suck, Blutarch."

The old man slumped back down in his seat, causing Redmond to smirk proudly.

"For a woman, you know how to gather your information, Miss Sparks," the red brother grinned. It wasn't meant to be a compliment, rather intended as a snide insult.

"She does indeed."

The Administrator had risen from her seat and was glaring down at the younger woman with eyes like ice. Teddy gulped again. But the purple clad woman was on her side.

"She knew from the moment that the BLU Scout disguised as their own that something was amiss in the war. She sensed the oncoming tide of deception and devious acts against her comrades, and acted on it before it could be taken too out of hand. It's because of her that every mercenary of RED still stands before us today in one piece, if not a bit shaken."

"She's right."

Pyro stood, still in her suit, voice still muffled, but audible in the ballroom. There were many murmurs among the people present as she spoke.

"We were beaten, mutilated, and brought down to the level of savages only to gain the slightest advantage over us in the long term. But BLU, we don't break so easily. We've got guts, just like you, and we can take on a hundred men twice your size."

"Here here!" Heavy leapt to his feet and pounded his fist on the table, accidentally breaking it. The rest of RED merrily laughed while the giant grinned sheepishly.

"Sparky doesn't take shit from nobody!" Scout interjected. "An' she sure as hell ain't gonna take any shit from you wackos!"

Engineer, Sniper, Spy and Medic all exchanged uneasy glances, not sure they wanted to know where this comeback would lead. Before any of them could fit a word in, Soldier darted to stand by Theodora's side, screaming, "CANADIAN OR NOT, SPARKY IS A FELLOW SOLDIER OF THE AMERICAN ARMY, AND SHE DESERVES TO BE TREATED AS NOTHING LESS! WOMAN OR NOT, SHE IS MY FRIEND, AND SHE SAVED MY LIFE. SHE… saved ALL our lives."

Soldier's contribution was touching, and Theodora couldn't help but feel moved. Redmond looked bored, while Blutarch seemed ready to burst with rage, but was too concerned for his own safety to do as such. In the brief silence that followed, every RED mercenary stood to be by her side, staring up at their superiors with challenging scowls and smirks.

"You said you vere going to let it slide. I zhink zhat should start now, Blutarch."

It wasn't the RED Medic who spoke. The BLU Medic stood in his seat, scowling all the same, but the undeniable trace of respect was difficult to swallow by everyone there. All eyes were on him, even Blutarch. The man opened his mouth, ready to scream at every last one of them, but a large, warm hand on his back stopped him. It was Saxton.

"Oi think that's enough for one night. If ya wanna talk to the woman, do it on your own time."

Reluctantly, after a moment of tense silence, the blue clad man nodded, relaxing in his wheelchair.

With that out of the way, Hale grinned, and the tension was immediately dissolved.

"Let's eat! Oi think RED gave us enough of a clue as who to toast to." The Australian raised his wine glass- which was actually a bucket- and cried out, "To Sparky, the incognito hippie crusher, or as she prefered to be called, the Plague Doctor!"

* * *

"I _won't,_" she emphasised, "not that I _can't_. It's different when it's just us and Heavy."

Bernhard rolled his eyes irritably.

"_Liebling, _it's a _slow _dance. I know you can at least handle _zhat_. You'll look like a stubborn child if you don't."

"I _am _a stubborn child."

All arguments he had in mind for this woman failed before he could even use them, and it drove the doctor mad with hatred and lust all at the same time. Therefore, he sighed, then hooked his leg under a nearby chair, pulling it to him to sit next to Theodora. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and leaned in close to her ear, breath low and threatening.

"You must _vant _me to punish you, Teddy, or else you vould not be acting zhis vay."

"Punish?" her voice had dropped as well, but sounded panicked and breathy. "The hell does that mean?"

"Here is zhe ultimatum you ah left vith. You vill Eizher come out on zhe dance floor vith me, und I vill fuck you again nice und slow later…" her breath hitched at the sudden change in demeanor. "... or I vill punish you vith fucking, pound into _das Loch _vith no mercy, no matter how much it hurts you, no matter how many times you cum und ah begging for relief. I vill _not _stop until I haff had my fill."

Her hand shot up to her mouth when he bit her ear, stifling the aroused gasp that tried to escape her lips.

"F-fuck you, Bernhard."

"Do you plan to?" the German chuckled into her ear. "Perhaps, if you vant, I vill allow zhat, but only if you dance _zhree _songs vith me, und not just vone. Vone dance, und _I _vill be doing zhe fucking."

"Fine, let's dance."

There was no time for him to make another snide remark as Theodora tugged him onto the dance floor, dress swiveling around her with every step.

When he finally pulled her into him to begin, she couldn't deny the closeness was nice, but she wasn't sure about the excessive warmth radiating off of him. Physical contact still wasn't an intimate feeling to her.

She stumbled. She tripped. She swore under her breath, but Medic was there the whole time, holding her up, nudging her feet with his when they wouldn't move, right arm behind, left holding her hand. Eventually, they settled into a rhythm that Teddy could easily follow, and became so relaxed, she rested her head on his shoulder.

"See?" he teased. "It's not so bad."

"Sh," she replied. "Don't ruin this."

"Don't ruin vhat?"

"The moment. The quiet, the relaxation."

"Oh, but talking is zhe best part about dancing," he intoned. "It's an excellent time to communicate und learn vone anozher's- ah, _Scheiße! Dämon!_"

She'd bitten his neck to quiet him down, not enough to break skin, , but now only her lips and tongue were there, sucking on the wound, licking at the tender flesh and soothing away the burn. His expression remained stoic, so as not to alert the world around him just how tight his dress pants were getting.

Her tongue went in circles, zig zag lines, and lapped at the exposed flesh as if hungry for it, as if savoring a treat. Immediately, he knew that mouth could be doing better work _elsewhere_. He almost whimpered when she pulled away, but couldn't contain the loud exhale when she licked her lips and looked up at him seductively.

"That lip gloss won't come off easy. I might have to finish the job later," Theodora purred.

Immediately, his face became flushed and his pupils dilated to show his obvious arousal.

"Upstairs, _Frauline. __**Now.**_"


End file.
